Konoha's Saviour
by Foxtriller
Summary: Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, ultimately, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger from Orochimaru…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd’s idea. Vote for Pairings
1. Prologue: Part 1

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Prologue: Part One**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

Hello guys…Miss me? (Cough) I'm sorry for disappearing for ages…here begins the re-write of Konoha's Saviour + ONE NEW CHAPTER HEHEHEHHEE

**Uh yeah… You really should read my newly re-written chapters because the plot(especially Itachi's character) has been changed drastically to suit my taste. It still fits the summary below, but other stuff has been changed…And you might notice that the chapter titles are not 'chapters' anymore, they're parts of the prologue (why am I writing such a super long prologue)**

Anyway, on that Note: This is the story that ddd first proposed to me (ddd, if you're still there, I love you, I love you, I love you…in a totally platonic sense. You know…the platonic sense in which you love someone you don't know. YEAH PRONESS HUH?)

Another Note: Even though it's been ages…I really still can't believe Itachi's dead in the canon…I always thought he'd be one of the characters who would outlive the entire manga. In other words, I thought he'd be immortal. I was one of the thousands of fan-girls around the world who spent almost a week walking around and just feeling quite hollow and blank. I was also one of those who cried while reading the part where he died, and kept rereading it until I felt a kind of numb loss. And then cried even more when discussing with other fangirls about how Itachi had been good all along. And began reliving all of the scenes where Itachi had appeared in the manga and realising that most of the affection we'd cultivated for him was from reading fanfiction…

Nevertheless…I still declare that Itachi was the best character in the entire manga!

Summary of this Story:

Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.

* * *

"DIE DEMON!" the shouts rang around her ears as she kept her easy pace down the alleyway. Naruto inclined her head as she heard the thundering footsteps nearing. Was this the fifth or sixth time? She shrugged to herself; it didn't make a difference, really.

_Eight whole years…they've been chasing me around this goddamn place. When are they going to give up? _

"We're not going to rest easy till you're dead!" The cries came from directly behind.

_Never, it seems. _Naruto gave a long-suffering sigh. _Go for it, you idiots, as long as you supply me, I'll run for your stupid, on-street, real-life, 'lets-kill-the-demon' show. _There was a hiss as a kunai narrowly missed her and made a squealing impact with the concrete ground. _Damn…that's one good kunai wasted. _Subconsciously, she calculated the time that it would take for the rest to start launching weapons.

Her feet beat at the ground easily, she was well used to running by now. _No big deal. I can out run all their asses. I could probably beat those ninja show-offs. But…I need to keep them hot on my trail. _The voices grew fainter, so she slowed down so they could catch sight of her. One of the villagers gave a triumphant shout when he saw her, raised his kunai and ran straight at her; the other's following, ranting and raving.

_They're drunk. _Naruto thought grimly and gritted her teeth, making her cheeks sore as she squeezed her jaws together frustratedly. _I could…I could…_

**Kill them? Sure, go ahead. **

_I'm not going to do that. _Naruto slowed her pace and pretended to tire. She turned around and shot scared glances at her pursuers. They were carefully practiced actions – all part of her elaborate act. _It'd help if there were rocks around…I could actually trip on a few. _She pretended to stumble over her seemingly wearied feet.

"She's tiring! We can get her!"

_Idiots. You could chase me till next week and I'd just keep running. It's for your own good that I'm not turning around and setting the demon on you. _

**Why not? **

_Why don't you shut up too, fox?_

Naruto wiped imaginary tears from her eyes and gave short choking gasps that sounded slightly like crying. _Like I would cry over those brain-dead retards. _Her eyes focused on her goal, a clearing that only lay a few feet from her. A few kunai flew past her and buried themselves in the soft soil in the clearing. _I love soil._ She made a well practiced slip on the wet dirt and went sprawling across the slippery glass.

_Ow…maybe I over-did that. _She could hear louder, more victorious shouts as metal and wood made contact with the ground around her. She gave a short gasp of pain as a large shuriken knocked the breath out of her. _That actually hurt. _

She was used to simple kunai wounds by now. The villagers, exuberant at their apparent victory, launched more weapons at her. Naruto got up and fell in real pain, the all too familiar feeling of blood slickly soaking her clothes and dripping through her hair comforting her. She was used to the soft thumps of kunai burying dully into her flesh. The familiar gushing that followed and the soft sense of lethargy that came with it was part of her daily life.

_I must be quite a sight. I can be one of those stunt-women for movies…how about I audition? I'll never die. _She joked to herself wryly. A feeling of frustration was slowly building in her stomach. She wanted to scream at the sky but she didn't want to scare away the villagers.

_Rats. _She closed her eyes as angry tears leaked out of her eyes. _Why do I cry every time? Over those retards throwing weapons at me, no less... Why am I crying again? _She balled her fists as the villagers began leaving, drunk in their own supposed victory. They laughed and hooted as they made their way back to the village, forgetting all their weapons and planning to drink themselves silly that night. _Those villagers would drag me to hell time and time again… It's funny how those cold blooded monsters are so caring to their own kin. But not to me…_

_Not the demon, of course. I'm not human. _She sat up as the last of them had left. She began pulling the weapons out, wincing slightly at the acute pinpricks of pain. _They couldn't care less. What's love, you retards? If your kid had the fox in their stomach, would you do this to them too? _She thought with hatred. _Will you cry if I sneak into your houses and slash their necks? _

_Would anyone cry if I killed myself? What am I? Sport?_

**Shut up. **

_Make yourself useful and start healing me._

A soothing wave of red chakra encased her form. She allowed the wounds to close up and stitch themselves together in their own time. She stood as most of the major wounds had finished healing and began gathering the bloodstained weapons.

_Didn't know I bled that much. Next time, I'll buy a bucket of red paint for extra effect, how about that? _She thought sarcastically as she began limping slowly back to her house, hugging an armful of bloody weapons tightly to her chest. She stuck closely to the shadows, and took three whole trips to transport to the whole lot back to her ever growing supply of weapons. Sitting down cross-legged, she took out a cleaning cloth and began washing the blood off her new 'batch' of weapons.

_It's like catching fish with bait. _She thought, grinning wryly to herself. _I'm the bait, I throw myself in the rat infested waters of Konoha, and attract mountains of their good quality weapons. _Her huge supply of weapons which lay around, taking up much of the space in her tiny, crowded apartment, consisted of nearly every weapon existing on earth, from ancient heirloom katana to carved gold kunai. _I'd be rich if I sold these. _She thought softly. Some of these here could be worth a lot. The villagers didn't know what they'd thrown away, and most wouldn't remember where they'd misplaced their precious family swords after a night of drunken revelling.

It was a foolproof plan. Naruto got up and went out to her equally cramped garden. Growing side by side with her half-dead cabbages and snail-eaten carrots, flourished an array of extremely poisonous herbs and plants. She could still feel the tingle of pride as she observed the vines, which uncurled themselves from the bamboo lattice and waved tendrils her, the venus fly-traps that snapped playfully at her fingers and the various other plants which extended leaves, blossoms and stems at her in greeting. _They weren't normal plants. _

Konoha's first ninja specialising in poisonous plants. Uzumaki Naruto. When she'd opened her door one morning and found these greeting her, she hadn't been fooled into eating them like the stupid villagers had expected her. Instead, she'd inserted her chakra into the plants, forcing them to submit to her will and making them her own, deadly weapons. The plants were dependant on her daily dose of chakra and acted only according to her will. They yielded poisons to her and moved according to her mind-spoken directions.

She was currently experimenting on making a plant entirely dependant on her, and as a result, she was growing a poisonous vine from the flesh of her right arm. It grew by the stimulus of chakra alone and seemed almost intelligent. Naruto named it Ginji.

So now Naruto was a self-trained and self-proclaimed poisons expert. She was also a weapons mistress. The two made a dangerous combination, which Naruto made sure to keep secret from the entire village, excluding the Hokage, to get them off her back – they'd be sending ninja's after her if they knew. Mentioning the hokage…

Naruto turned her face to the sky and pointed an indignant finger. "I know you're watching oji-san!"

Meanwhile, in his office, old man Sarutobi choked on his tea and spluttered all over his crystal ball. _Damn, she knows…_

And shortly after, _Damn, I fuzzed up my crystal ball._

* * *

Satisfied that she had given the old man a good scare, Naruto turned back to her own thoughts.

_Life here is getting dreary…_

She groaned as her stomach complained. "That's one of the problems about you." She remarked to the plants, "I can't eat you." _And you're all way too ugly to eat anyway. _She added fondly in her head. _Funny how my only friends are plants, and I live in the Leaf Village…_

The plants seemed to quail under her mocking glare. She laughed, as the plants breathed a sigh of relief, and fished some money from her pocket.

"I'm off to Ichiraku's."

One of her favourite plants, the Venus fly-eater, opened its jaws enquiringly and waved its leaves.

Naruto chuckled, "Yes, yes…I'll bring you back some of the soup broth for you guys." She gestured to the other plants, which seemed to nod in approval. Ginji unfurled himself lethargically and came snaking down Naruto's arm, waving a lazy goodbye to his fellow plants.

Naruto shook her head in mirth as she walked away. _I must be going mad. Talking to plants. Huh. _

**Not any madder than me, locked up in a crampy cage with only water and tunnels to look at, with not a single person to talk to. **Kyuubi retorted drily.

_No one__ asked you to talk, fox._

* * *

She sighed as she walked towards Ichiraku. _What is with those villagers? Did their parents drop them on their heads when they were born? _She laughed a little at the thought of dozens of villagers being dropped on their heads. _I am really going mad. Perhaps insanity runs in my family…_

Kyuubi made no comment to that.

Her wrecked sandals scuffed on the ground. They were too small for her, and contrasted strangely with her new shirt, which the Hokage had purchased for her recently. _Sometimes, I wonder, what the hell am I doing here? When I'm 30, if I'm still alive, am I going to continue running everyday and gathering weapons? Am I going to have an actual life? Like a job or something? _

She scratched her head. Suddenly, she didn't feel so hungry anymore. _There's no future for someone like me, not in this village, anyway. I need a way out. _

**Wait no. Don't suicide. That's bad for my spiritual health. **

_Shut up, idiot. Like I'd kill myself. It'd give the fools in this village the satisfaction that I never want them to have. I'm not going to die. I'm never going to die. _

**You're not immortal either. **

_You're so good at misunderstanding. Join a comedy show or something. That's a good one. A humongous lump of fur in a talk show… What a hit…_

She lifted her head to the sky again, addressing the Hokage. "OI, oji-san, meet you in your office!"

She pulled a face before dashing off towards the Kage tower on her trained legs, faster than any Magic Ball could follow.

* * *

"WHAT?" Sandaime roared, raining spittle on Naruto, who cowered a little and wiped the saliva off her face and bare arms, "You're going to _leave_ the village?"

"Yeah…I figured life would be better somewhere else…" Naruto fidgeted a little. She didn't want to hurt the old man, since he did care for her. But she didn't want to appear weak either. She held herself together composedly and smiled falsely at him. When she came back, she would be a strong Ninja, and then everyone would acknowledge her, even the stupid villagers.

Sandaime sighed. _She's right…_ "I can't let you go like this, Naruto…you're only eight, you're too little." Maybe he hadn't done enough? Maybe he should have taken her under his wing…

She shrugged, "I can take care of myself. I have my plants." She waved her small hand, and Ginji uncurled himself, made his winding way out of her sleeve, and waved lazily at the Sandaime with one of his tendrils.

"This is my pet, Ginji." The vine twisted itself around her arm casually, unnervingly reminding the Hokage of Orochimaru's snakes. _She's got great potential as a ninja…_ The scene reminded him eerily of a scene from decades before.

…

"_WHAT?" a younger Sandaime roared, raining spittle on the skinny, pale, dark-haired man before him, who stood emotionless, his eyebrow creasing a little on the saliva on his arms, "You're leaving the village?"_

"_I can't conduct my experiments here." Orochimaru explained simply. He kept his eyes away from that of his mentor. He didn't want to tell the Sandaime of his greater, grander schemes, because he knew he'd be berated for it. Wait till he'd perfected the Immortality Jutsu…then the whole village, no…world, would have to acknowledge him, even that stupid genius kid Minato. _

_Sandaime sighed. He knew the boy was right. "I can't let you go just like this, Orochimaru. You're twenty-eight and a responsible ninja who should be assisting the village instead of pursuing your own goals." Hadn't he taught the boy the most out of his team? What more could he do? Or was this favouritism going to be his downfall? _

_The pale man shrugged nonchalantly, "I can take care of myself. I have my snakes." He waved a pallid arm and a snake shot from his sleeves, hissing and ready to bite. It made venomous eye contact with the Sandaime and looked eerily intelligent as it regarded him with unnerving reptilian eyes. _

"_This is Sasuke." Orochimaru said by way of introduction. "I named him after Uchiha Sasuke. The snake warrior who was the brother of the first Uchiha, Uchiha Madara." _

_Sandaime regarded the snake, waging a silent battle of stares. Orochimaru's fixation with bloodlines, especially the Uchiha…It was slightly disturbing. _

…

"But are you sure…" The hokage swallowed his fear. Was this simple déjà vu? Or would history really repeat itself? Would Konoha have another S-rank missing-nin to deal with? He closed his eyes tightly. History was the best teacher…Nidaime had taught him that…but…

"I'm sure…besides I've got the teme fox in my stomach to heal me." Naruto explained truthfully, interrupting his thoughts.

**I thought you came up with a better insult ages ago. **

Naruto ignored him. "Please, Oji-san, I want to live my life, without villagers after me, without a council which wants my blood, or even better, my head on a platter, served fresh."

Sandaime winced. _Eight-year olds do not talk like that… She's lived a very hard life that has caused her to mature far quicker than she should…_

"What will you do once you're out of the village? Any other village will be more than willing to get their hands on you. Are you going to sever all ties with Konoha and become an enemy nin?"

"No." came the curt reply, "Mind you, the only reason I'm not doing that is because my father…I don't know who he is, but I'm sure, being a Konoha nin, that he wouldn't have liked it if his daughter betrayed the village. Besides, I need to honour his death"

Sandaime sighed and began in a quiet voice, "Naruto…your father…he…" _What am I saying? _He stopped talking abruptly. No…he was not going to reveal such shocking information so early.

"My father what?" Naruto asked, suddenly suspicious.

"Nothing. I thought of something, but I've forgotten it. I'm sure it's not important." He said kindly. _Forgive me, Naruto. _

Her face was still suspicious, but she decided to leave it alone, "Can I leave now?" Ginji waved a lazy goodbye.

"Oh yes." The Hokage sighed, regret settling heavily on his heart. _Minato…what have you done? _"But what are you going to do for a living once you're out of the village?"

"Don't worry, I've got it all planned out…nearly. If no-one'll hire me, I still have tonnes of weapons to sell. My plants will be good for selling too…I studied the books in your library, they say that there are only three specialised poison experts left in the shinobi nations, all of them old geezers from Kusa. It would do you good if one came from Konoha, huh?"

_This is ludicrous. _Sandaime thought painfully to himself. _An eight year old weapon-monger? Kami help me…_

"Old man?"

Sandaime looked up and found that Naruto's face had softened a little

"Thankyou…for…everything." Ginji warped himself ridiculously into the shape of a heart. "You're the only friend I have in Konoha. If I ever come back, it'll be for you. Please stay alive."

Sarutobi was touched, "Naruto, just remember…that I will always care for you. Is there anything you need?"

"No. I will buy everything I need with my own money and leave tonight." She smiled grimly at the only person she cared about in the entire village

_So determined to be independent. _Sarutobi thought sadly, "I bid you luck, Naruto."

"I might see you again…one day…old man." There was no determination in her voice as she began walking out the door.

Sandaime smiled, trying to hold back tears, "Good bye, granddaughter."

The door closed with a soft clink.

…

"_Orochimaru, out of all my students, you were the most talented. You were a great talent, unrecognised throughout your harsh childhood and untrained during the wars, when I was focused on fighting." Sandaime began._

_The pale man no reply, only waiting for a prompt to leave. _

"_Just…" He could tell that his former student was beginning to get fidgety from his twitching eyebrow. What arrogance…such impatience… "Just don't forget that you are a Konoha nin. This is your village. I am still your mentor."_

_Orochimaru gave a terse nod, gold eyes unblinking._

"_I bid you the best of luck in your experiments."_

_Orochimaru turned to leave, brushing off the blessing like dust, "I will be back one day old man…" There was no affection in his voice. Only stone-cold politeness. Or was that hatred? Resentment?_

_Sandaime sighed a little. When had their relationship deteriorated to such a poor degree? "Good bye, Orochimaru."_

_The door closed with a soft clink and he was gone._

…

Sandaime put his head in his hands.

_Did I make the right decision?_

* * *

So that's the end of the first chapter, re-written! Yay! Go Me!

3 Charel (Hey look, new nickname…) (Kitchi is like, so last year. Jk jk)


	2. Prologue: Part 2

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Prologue: Part Two**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**And here's the re-write of chapter 2!**

**I wish that someone would actually read this (and if you are, good on you)**

**

* * *

**

Summary of this Story:

Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.

Naruto hefted her bag of belongings as she walked down the forest path. She'd bought sealing scrolls o contain her weapons and she'd painstakingly drawn symbols of each type of weapon on the scrolls so she could summon them with blood and chakra. _So it's just me and my plants against the world now. Do you think I'll ever come back? _

**Talking to me for once, huh? **

_I'm talking to myself, you douche. _She shifted her bag. _Who knew my bare belongings weighed so much. _Ginji was mothering over the poisonous seeds she'd packed into her sleeves. It'd pained her to leave most of her plants at home, as she hadn't enough money to buy pots and more sealing scrolls to bring them with her. _It seems that if I'm always going to be on the run, I'm going to have to grow all the plants on…myself. Aren't I freaky enough with a fox in my stomach? Now I'm going to walk around with vines draped on my shoulders and venus fly traps snapping from my hands. _

**I'm not freaky. **

Suddenly Ginji twitched a little. Naruto tensed at his touch. _Enemies._ Ginji twitched again. _Six of them._ She fused her chakra with the Ginji's tiny senses. Her breath stilled and she closed her eyes, stopping still in between the trees so she could feel the weak signals of Ginji's senses. _Six…six men in the trees? With metal…But no chakra…Six bandits? _

She pulled a kunai out of her bag. "Come out!" She yelled. _In my current level…I'll only be able to deal with about two at once…I'll try to catch all of them…and then I'll have to run. _

**Or…you could let me out and by the time I was done there would be nothing left to run from.**

_Haha, I'm so amused. _She sank slowly into a stance she'd seen training ninja's use. What was it called? Gentle Fist? Who cared…as long as she looked good…

Six ragged bandits dropped out of the trees around her, daggers in hand and eyes leering.

"Oh lookie, Shifu!" snorted one of them, "We caught a hot chick!"

(A.N.: Dude she's 8?)

"Wrong." Naruto interrupted, "You have bad manners. Its, 'Look, Shifu-kun, we caught a good lady.' Now say it with me. 'Look Shifu-kun." She prompted, causing the bandit to bristle in anger. Ignoring their fury, she continued to rile them and began speaking like a mother would speak to a child, "Now don't be difficult, I'll say it slowly…"

"Hey you little girlie!" the one named Shifu shouted, pointing an angry finger, "Tell us what's in that bag and don't say its nothing."

Naruto straightened her back elegantly, and gave them her best contemptuous look, "No it's not nothing, it's something."

"Give us the bag, before we gut yer." Another bandit growled menacingly and began walking towards her slowly, pointing the dagger threateningly. Naruto focused on the slowly lessening distance between her and the bandit. He was isolating himself to attack her…Good…She slipped an arm out of the bag-strap.

"You want the bag?" All of a sudden, Naruto leapt up in the air, "Then have it!" She smashed the bag into the bandit's head, knocking him out with the weight of all the scrolls. _Looks like my bare belongings being heavy is a good thing. _

She took the element of surprise this had given her and ran forward, her bag gaining momentum. Thwack! Thonk! Another fell. Four to go…She'd used up the few seconds of time she'd bought with that surprise ambush…Time for some quick planning…

She closed her eyes as Ginji dug into the little pockets sewn into her coat, fishing out poisonous seeds and pressing them at her hands where she gathered her chakra and dropped the chakra-infused seeds into the soil. Suddenly two poisonous seedlings popped out of the ground right before the men, intent on spiking them, the bandits jumped, missing the attack.

Naruto gritted her teeth. _I can't do much more with these…_ A kind of real panic was seeping into her senses, replacing the calm. _Am I going to die, barely a mile from Konoha? I haven't even begun my new life. What fate…to catch a brief taste of freedom…only to be killed by retarded bandits…No…that's not happening to me. I'm not going to let that happen._

Pop! Another two seedlings sprouted. The bandits jumped away again.

_Damnit…I can't catch them…_Hardly had she finished thinking when the four charged, throwing punches, slashing with their daggers, and yelling warcries.

She blocked the best she could, but many bruises began appearing on her arms. _I'm no match for them…_ Ginji lashed and recoiled like a snake, flaying the bandits with poisonous cuts. She stumbled back, to find herself caught in a pair of strong arms.

"Got 'er!" Shifu shouted in triumph.

Naruto wriggled around, "Get off!" Only to find a rusty blade pressed to her neck. She gulped and shut up promptly. Ginji shrank back into her sleeve uncertainly, tapping into her chakra in search of instructions. She sent the vine a mental message to wait till the time was right…She still had time…she could still strike…

The other three bandits went over to where she stood and began to rummage through her belongings. But before they'd even laid a hand on the bag, there was a hiss of metal slicing through air, and a sudden spurt of blood as the shocked bandits found their reaching hands disabled with a shuriken each. They jumped back, alarmed and looked around, shouting and moaning in panic.

A dark hooded figure leapt out of a nearby tree and flew at the bandits with incredible speed, Naruto barely caught the blurred outline of a boy casting left and right with a glistening katana and killing all three with ease and no hesitation. It was over in less than a minute, the three men suddenly simply collapsed, throats opened cleanly with hot blood still pumping out by the litre before they could even cry out in fear. The figure blurred in speed and suddenly appeared before them. Shifu blanched in fear as the figure advanced. Naruto's throat tightened as well at the sight of the cold-blooded killer who had just effortlessly slain three grown men. Would he kill her too?

The three stood, frozen for a few seconds, Shifu in indecision, Naruto in fear and the mysterious hooded boy in an eerily calm silence. Finally, Shifu let go of her shakily and waved his knife, "There, you have 'er… I wasn't doin' nothing." Naruto flicked her eyes over to the figure and saw the muscles tensing in the arm that held the katana. She narrowed her eyes.

_I'm not going to let you play hero. _The two moved simultaneously. Ginji lashed out with lightning speed, entwining with Shifu's neck, and caught the blade just a hairsbreadth from impaling the bandit with his thick, rough coils.

The boy caught Naruto's eyes with a questioning look. With surprising strength, he freed his blade and watched impassively as Ginji, thickened, tightened, and then paused indecisively. Shifu was gasping for air and tugging at the emotionless plant body in vain.

"Well?" The boy asked at length. "He's not dead yet, in case the twitching hasn't alerted you."

Naruto gaped for a few seconds.

**And so the mysterious saviour talks! **Kyuubi remarked sarcastically.

"I…I…" She waved helplessly at Ginji who was waiting for her to make a decision. She flapped her hand at Shifu who had stopped struggling and was resorting to dangling limply while looking around in fear.

"Never killed before?" The boy asked casually, in the same careless tone that normal people usually used to ask something simple like 'Never had dango before?'

"I..No." Naruto admitted, watching Shifu in revulsion. She'd been so afraid of this man just a few minutes ago…and now he was completely at her mercy, yet she couldn't kill him, no matter what. She couldn't summon up the hate or indifference.

_If I kill him, it'll just be the end. It'll mean there would be no more Shifu. That's one less soul on earth. It'd just be like as if he'd never existed…He'd just be gone…_ The idea made her blood run cold and she stared at her feet. To just disappear…to end abruptly like that…She shuddered a little.

She'd barely lifted her head when there was a frustrated growl, a whirr of silver and then an explosion of scarlet, spraying from Shifu's chest, as he coughed once, twice, gave a surrendering gurgle and fell forwards, eyes rolling.

Naruto stood transfixed for a few seconds, watching as the man sank and suddenly seemed to become more of a bag of jelly and less of a human. The strain of the sagging man soon grew too much for Ginji, who quickly freed himself and crept back up her arm, letting the dead man slump onto the ground with a dull thump.

She shook herself out of her trance, and ignoring the stranger, proceeded to gather her belongings. The scrolls were relatively undamaged, although some dirt had gotten on them…Some of the pots had cracked, and the poisonous runners had invaded some nearby pots…She gently eased them back into their own pots. _Plants have personal space too…_

"You fought well, just then, until they caught you. Always fight against a tree or a wall when you're up against a group, because they can easily sneak behind you." The boy remarked, interrupting her thoughts.

Her head shot up abruptly at this, "You were watching?" Naruto said incredulously, "And you didn't help?"

"You seemed to be doing fine." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"DOING FINE!" Naruto exploded, "You just watched as I got beaten up and decided to play the friggin hero at the last minute?"

"Maybe I did." The boy shrugged and scratched his be-hooded head, "No thanks from the quarry?" He stipulated offhandedly.

Naruto deflated a little but remained stubborn, "Thanks." She begrudged, feeling the reassuring presence of Ginji coiling tightly against her arm. She was on alert all of a second. The hair on the skin on the back of her neck pricked.

_I'm talking informally to a man who I'd just witnessed killing 4 men with ease. _

_No…not with ease…_

_More like, as if it was a simple, everyday routine like combing my hair every morning…_

The speculations that had been shaping up in her head settled down into cold hard truth. She froze as realisation washed over her like a cool breeze. _He's not like me…_

_I'm a girl trying to protect myself with my meagre skills and techniques…_

_He, on the other hand, is a pure predator. Someone who's capable of killing just for the sake of killing…It's not even a chore for him…It's some necessary habit…He's not even shaking, and he's just taken 4 lives…Who is this guy?_

The boy chucked in a dry, emotionless way, "Stop acting like a scared rat, I'm not much older than you." He lifted his hood, revealing a young, twelve year old face. The boy had raven black hair and similar obsidian eyes, "My name is Uchiha Itachi." He said tonelessly, by way of introduction.

"Uchiha…" Naruto tasted the word. It sounded familiar. Uchiha…Uchiha Shikamaru? No, that was not it…Was it Uchiha Shino then? No…not that either…Then it struck her. _The resemblance is amazing, could they be related? _

"Uchiha, as in, Uchiha Sasuke?" She asked, trying to match his clipped tones.

"You know…" Itachi said in a faintly annoyed tone, "its protocol to introduce yourself after someone has introduced themselves to you. But yes…Uchiha as in…" He took a long, deep breath, "As in Uchiha Sasuke…yes."

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto." Said Naruto. Itachi's eyes widened in recognition of the child known as the 'demon fox'.

There was a brief, uncomfortable silence, as the two sized each other up. Naruto stood her ground firmly and tried not to blink as she stared back at the indifferent dark eyes. _If he attacks…I run…But it's unlikely I'd get far if someone like him was on my trail…_She had the exhilarating feeling of a mouse who thinks it still has time to escape while the cat toys with it before eating it.

"What are you doing, so close to Konoha?" Itachi prompted.

"I'm from Konoha too," She replied quickly, "But I'm leaving." There was a depressed tone to her voice, and she continued to regard him as if she were trapped prey.

He turned his head to the side and scratched at his nape distractedly, the first human action she'd seen him take. "I'm leaving too." He stated after a few seconds of quiet thought. He regarded her for a few more moments, "How old are you?"

"Eight."

He drew a deep breath and hissed, as if the subject of eight year old children pained him. His eyes seemed to flash red for a second before he regained control over himself. "I'm twelve."

_Well shit. _Naruto thought. _He's only 4 years older than me…I thought he was 20 or something. Killing like that…that means…that means that… at my age, he would have been about Chuunin level. I'm genin…but I can't even do bunshin because no one wants to teach me…_

"Since we're both leaving, you can come with me."

The question caught her completely off guard. He wanted _her_ to go with him? Why would he propose that?

_Wait a sec…gather yourself…an almost heartless guy, who can kill without breaking a sweat, wants you to go with him…to who knows where…_

"Where are you going?" Naruto asked, a new sense of security soothing her. So he wasn't going to kill her. For some reason or other, he'd made the decision to take her with him, after finding out she was eight…

"Akatsuki." He replied softly. "It's an organisation for people like us."

"Eh?" Naruto mentally tallied up the astronomical differences between herself and Itachi, "Like us? Like what?"

"People with potential…" he hesitated. Naruto's eyes narrowed a little. She'd seen that look a lot of times. It was the look that people made when they were trying to make up a nice lie to cover up the ugly truth, "People who should not be restrained by a village." He concluded.

_Well even if it's a lie, it sounds fair. I don't want to be restrained by a village either…especially not a village with idiot villagers like Konoha…_

"It sounds good." She replied, "I'll come." He merely lifted an eyebrow and nodded.

"Well uh…" Naruto slung her bag onto her shoulder and began shrugging it into a more comfortable position, "Let's go then."

* * *

"You want to join our organization of hired mercenaries?" asked the old man behind the counter, the manager of 'Shoujo's hired mercenaries'.

"Yeah." Itachi said, "We figured it would be the easiest way to get money." He half-lied. They'd stopped by at the non-ninja village and decided that they should earn some money and buy some provisions before seeking out the Akatsuki.

"Who's that little girl?"

"That's…my…friend." Said Itachi.

"Can she fight?" the old man demanded.

Naruto began to open her mouth, but was intercepted by Itachi, who simply said, "Yeah."

"Your names please." He produced a plain folder with lists of names written within it.

"Uchiha Itachi and Uzumaki Naruto." He intoned.

The old man wrote the names down. "Your rooms are in the next level, Corridor Five, rooms 11 and 12." He drew out two keys and handed them over. "Get settled, your first 'mission' will start tomorrow."

_Two wannabe ninja brats…they'll probably go home crying after their first mission._

It would be a week later when he found out who he had really hired.

* * *

Itachi and Naruto walked down the corridors to their rooms in a silence that could be described as tentative. Naruto stole quick glances at the older boy, who stared forward impassively. _Why would he ask me along if he's making all the decisions and not even bothering to acknowledge my presence? _

When they'd reached their rooms, Itachi mutely handed over to her the key to room 11. She bristled a little. _There he goes making a choice for me again. _

"I'd like to take room 12 please." She piped up impudently. Ginji shot out of her sleeve and grabbed his wrist swiftly before he could leave.

Itachi blinked in surprise at the plant on his arm, as if he'd been half asleep all this time. He stared at her long and hard for a while, and she began backing away a little, although Ginji still held onto Itachi's arm with the persistency of a leech.

_Maybe that was a bad idea. _Her heart began beating erratically as she began feeling increasingly discomfited.

"Um…its ok, I uh…I'll just-"

"Ok." Itachi interrupted finally, grabbed her hand, and pressed the cool metal key into her palm. He took the one she'd been holding, shook Ginji off, unlocked the door to room 11 and closed it behind him with a soft click.

Naruto was left standing in the empty corridor with the key to room 12 in her hand and a strange sense of achievement in her heart. She stood there simply, just grinning widely at the blank door of the room Itachi occupied.

She stood there grinning smugly for about 10 minutes before he re-opened the door and told her to 'get the hell out of the way', and sent her running off to her own room in a sort of dazed euphoria of someone who had just won a victory over an invincible foe.

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW! I LUV YOU FOR EVA IF YOU REVIEW! COOKIES FOR THE FIRST PERSON TO REVIEW! (CHOCOLATE CHIP)**

**Oh dear…I have changed the plot a bit haven't I? =]**

**Charel – btw, Polls are over and pairing has been CHOOOOOOSEEEEEEN haha…**


	3. Prologue: Part 3

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Prologue: Part Three**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**And here's the re-write of chapter 3!**

**Please be reading? hehe**

* * *

Summary of this Story:

Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.

Naruto woke with the big grin still plastered firmly on her face. She practically skipped out of her room with her pajamas on, and with some newly gained confidence, she rapped smartly on Itachi's room. Upon hearing no response, she drew a deep breath and pushed the door open.

"Hey Ita-huh?" She blinked when she noticed the room was empty. The bed was neatly made and Itachi's bag had disappeared. In fact, the room looked like it had not been used. "Hey don't tell me…" She grumbled to herself as she scratched her stomach from under her pajamas, "He's gone and left without me…" She felt slightly safer insulting him while he was absent.

"That bastard…" She mumbled to herself as she began rummaging through the chest of drawers to check if Itachi had left any sign of where he'd gone.

"Who?" Itachi's voice floated in from behind her. She turned quickly and found herself staring at Itachi's decapitated head floating in mid air and glaring at her.

"Y-you." She said without thinking, taking a step back from the bodiless head. _Hey is that Genjutsu? _She closed her eyes and concentrated hard. _Kai_. She opened them again, but the head was still there. _Kai kai kai kai kai! _She screamed mentally, to no effect.

"That's the last thing people usually tell me." Itachi's head remarked, and suddenly, an outline of his body began forming, at first with the appearance of a watercolour painting, and gradually filling out with flesh and substance. His eyes had taken on a dark, sinister glint, "After that, they're writhing in too much pain to speak. And after that, they're dead."

Suddenly, there were three shuriken in each of his hands. Naruto opened her mouth in fear and took a step back.

_Shiiiiiiiiiit…. _Naruto closed her eyes tight. She suddenly felt very cold in her loose pajamas.

Suddenly there were 6 simultaneous thunks as the shuriken buried themselves in the cupboard behind her, only missing her by half an inch or so. She opened her eyes incredulously. Itachi missed? She turned and saw the lethal little hooked stars buried deep in the wood as if they had been thrown that way deliberately.

"Just joking." Itachi said without even a trace of humour in his voice. He approached, pushing past Naruto, who was still standing stock still in shock, and quietly pulled the shuriken out from the cupboard.

She gathered her wits shakily and stuttered a faint, "Ha…haha…very…haha funny…"

**You're such a retard. **

"We have a mission." Itachi told her in his quiet voice after gathering his shuriken, as if he had not just pretended to assassinate her, "Front desk, 15 minutes." He turned and began heading out the door. He paused at the doorframe and added as an afterthought, "Oh, we're even now."

_Even? _Naruto blinked stupidly at Itachi's retreating back. Ginji reached up helpfully to scratch her head. "Oooh!" She said aloud. "Even are we?"

_So it's a competition now? _She clenched her fists at her side.

_Well I'm going to win!_

* * *

Naruto arrived promptly at the desk, her bag slung over her shoulders, and a brand new black, white and orange hoodie over the orange shirt with swirl designs that Sandaime had given her and her scruffy black shorts and sandals.

Itachi was standing at the desk already, with no bag and only wearing his dark blue cloth and fishnet Uchiha shirt, ninja shorts and shinobi sandals. He took a glance at her bag and remarked, "Get rid of that bag. You only need your pockets and holsters."

"Hey but-"

"Just go." Itachi's eyes flashed and Naruto thought she saw another tinge of red, but she couldn't be sure. She turned her tail and ran back to her room, dumping her bag and dashing back as soon as she'd organised some weapons and scrolls into the pockets of her clothes.

When she returned, she noticed the gleam of metal on Itachi's forehead. It was a konoha fore-head protector, similar to the one that Iruka sensei wore, except a long ugly gash had been carved through the symbol.

"You're a ninja?" She asked. Only qualified ninja wore headbands…Since he was 12, he should be barely out of academy…

"Anbu Captain." Itachi stated succinctly.

Naruto gaped for a few seconds. _Anbu? _The anbu were the elite of the village…When one became an anbu, there were suddenly a whole different class. They secluded themselves from the rest of the ninja and only socialised with other Anbu, spending most of their lives on missions that normal jounin could not even dream of doing.

And this kid wasn't just an Anbu.

He was an Anbu _Captain. _Naruto stared at the boy for a few seconds, trying to gauge whether he was lying or not. Any chuunin with enough experience and acquired speed could kill bandits. But the manner in which he acted…it all made sense. If he was an Anbu, then the cold, aloof manner was perfect. And if he was a captain, he would not be respected unless he commanded enough superiority and kept himself remote and unapproachable.

_Like a fortress…A one man army, impersonal and dangerous…_

"Then why are you leav-" She stopped short when he fixed her with a glare that could have frozen hell.

"It is none of your business." Itachi asserted coldly, turned his heel, and led the way out the door without another word.

Naruto turned her nose up in the air and stuck her tongue out like a child at Itachi to make herself feel better. "Fine! Be like that!" She yelled and stomped after him.

_God…acting like a kid is awesome fun…no wonder babies have tantrums so often._

* * *

Naruto kicked at a stone as they walked. "Can't we jump in trees like normal ninjas?"

"No." Itachi said firmly, while consulting the map. "We were told to clear out the Kuromaru Gang that resides in this area. Walking here will hopefully draw them out."

"And what if it doesn't?" Naruto asked impudently. She took out a kunai and tossed it in the air, catching it skilfully. She glanced at Itachi to see if he'd noticed. His was watching her from the corner of his eye, a faintly amused look on his face, although he wasn't smiling…yet. Humming to herself, she tossed the kunai up again and caught it, then took out another kunai and began juggling the two comically, then three, all the time darting glances at Itachi.

A slight curve was on his lips. _Oh yeah… _thought Naruto. _And so the ice cold prodigy smiles! _

"They'll definitely be drawn out, with someone like you here making an unprofessional ruckus." Itachi remarked very quietly, still smiling dimly.

Naruto's face fell immediately. _He was smiling to mock me. Not because I was actually funny or something… Damn…_

"Naruto, why don't we stop at the village today to train a bit?" Itachi questioned loudly.

Said girl almost jumped. _Wait don't get me wrong…_ She turned and stared at Itachi's face, uncertain of what to do.

**Dude. Your new idol just talked to you…good move, stand there and gape yeah? **

_Are you kidding? This guy never talks loudly! _Naruto replied, forgetting that she should be ignoring the fox.

Slightly irritated, Itachi prompted, "We might get to fight some real baddies."

Unsure of whether Itachi was acting or if he'd totally lost it, Naruto decided with some hesitation to play along. "Uh sure! I can't wait to try out my jutsu!"

Itachi nodded in satisfaction, and his face settled back to into its normal faintly irritated look.

Naruto sighed. _Well…there ends the act. Here comes the famous anbu silence again…_She kicked another rock.

* * *

The village was called 'Grass'. It was almost as dilapidated as Naruto's apartment, and consisted of a collection of sorry looking shacks which might have looked better twenty years ago. The streets were empty except of one or two beggars with sunken eyes.

A man greeted them as they made their way down the street. "Hello. I am Nagao Tenko. You are new I assume? Get out of here when you still can." His skin was sallow and he looked as if he'd forgotten to smile. His clothes were almost as torn up as Naruto's old sandals.

"I am Itachi." Itachi said without mentioning his last name. "We are here to see Tamaki."

The man nodded unenthusiastically and said, "I'll take you kids to him."

"So…" Naruto began, trying for conversation, "Why should we get out of here when we still can?"

"We were once peaceful – a village unaffected by ninja, but then those who call themselves the Kuromaru gang came and terrorised our quiet homes. Now the village is totally controlled by the Kuromaru Gang. They kill anyone who rebels against them. There isn't a strong soul left here. Kids like you guys should find happier places to stay. Places where there are no ninja."

Itachi said nothing and continued staring ahead stonily, but Naruto was intrigued, "Why do you say that?"

Itachi shot her a look that plainly said 'shut-the-hell-up'. But she continued, "Why do you dislike ninja so much?"

"I hate ninja." Tenko spat on the ground spitefully, "They come with all their special skills and fancy moves, and think they're above everyone else. They destroyed my home. Can you see that?" He pointed at a nearby store, which has almost empty shelves, "That used to be full and bustling of happy, normal people. After the ninjas came, the whole village has become sad. Ninjas are piles of good for nothing shit that only exist to terrorise normal people."

"Hey but-" Naruto began, but was interrupted.

"Just look at the Ninja wars. While the big Ninja Villages warred over stupid quarrels, millions of normal civilians were killed in the massive ninjutsu that the ninja called up. They think that they have a right over our lives because we are weaker than them."

"That's only bad ninja." Naruto protested.

"There is…_no such thing_ as a good ninja." Tenko bit harshly, fixing her with dead eyes.

Naruto opened her mouth to retaliate, but she stopped short at the black look Itachi shot her.

"Personally, I think the world would be much better without any ninjas." Tenko continued, eyes fiery with hate, "Those ninjas who call themselves good…Like that village, what was it called? Konoha? Pah! They're just the bad as the rest of them. They're not normal, they don't understand normal people like us. They don't understand hardship."

Naruto grit her teeth. Itachi gripped her hand so tightly that it hurt and glared at her coldly to stop her from jumping the man who was ranting, ignorant of the mood of the two he was escorting.

"…They've never tasted real pain before. They go around thinking they're so great, because they're lives are so good. Earning money for bashing people up…"

There was a blur of pink as a woman rushed out from a house and clapped her hand over Tenko's mouth. "Tenko! Shut up! What if they hear you?"

He slapped her hand away, "Go away Mieko. I don't care. They can get me if they want. Me dying…doesn't make a difference to the number of kills a ninja makes."

"Mou…you…you idiot!" She yelled, "I care. So shut your mouth!"

"This is my wife, Mieko." Tenko said with a long suffering sigh.

"Eh, who are these kids?"

"I'm Naruto, and that is Itachi." Naruto said quickly, before Itachi could make his usual, dead-eyed introduction. "Can you take us to Tamaki? He's expecting us!"

"Are you relatives of some sort?" Mieko asked, looking concerned at the prospect of two children wandering into a village without adults.

"Something like that." Naruto said, grinning.

"I'll take you." Mieko pushed Tenko into the house, "Go in there and shut your mouth, you stupid man. And make some congee. We might sell some and make a bit of money and live for another day, at least."

She set out at a brisk trot, "Come on kids. You must be cold." She said, glancing at Itachi's bare arms, "Don't worry, Tamaki's is not far, he has spare rugs."

"I'm fine." Itachi said flatly.

Naruto rolled her eyes.

* * *

"Eh?" Tamaki shouted as soon as he saw them, he was a gaunt old man with grey hair and a face that looked more well fed than most of the village.

"These kids turned up, saying you wanted to see them?" Mieko said as she backed out of the doorway, "I'd stay for tea but I need to get home and see what my stupid husband is up to." She bustled out of the door and trotted home at the same brisk pace.

Tamaki stared at her retreating back. "Eh?" He repeated.

"We are the mercenaries you hired from Shinji." Itachi said flatly.

Naruto whacked him, "Shoujo. Not Shinji."

"Whatever."

"What do you mean? Shoujo sent brats like you? Can you even pick up a sword?" He stared at Itachi for a few seconds, then Naruto. "The short blonde one doesn't even have a sword."

"I have kunai!" Naruto proffered, pulling out some to show him. "And shuriken." She pulled those out too.

"What do you think you are? Playing Ninja?" Tamaki snorted.

"We are ninja." Itachi replied readily.

Tamaki stopped short, and gaped for a few seconds. "Ninja?" His eyes narrowed a little. "Shoujo sent us _ninja_? Where did he get _ninja_ from? Ninja are very expensive!"

"That is none of your business." Itachi continued coolly, "Show us our living quarters. We will clear out the Kuromaru gang by the end of the week."

Tamaki hesitated indecisively, as if he still did not believe them. "Don't prank me, you brats. If I find out you aren't ninja, I will chuck you out an-" He suddenly froze, turning rigid. "Y-your eyes!" he pointed at Itachi's eyes, that had turned a deep crimson.

_I wasn't seeing things. His eyes are actually do turn red. That's such a cool trick…_ Naruto thought.

**I can do it too. Animalistic slits look even better than commas. **

"Listen, old man, I have no time to hear your talk. Just take us to our living quarters and get lost." Itachi growled.

_That's not very nice. _Naruto thought and piped up. "I apologise for Itachi. He gets snappy, but please take us to our rooms, we are very tired." Itachi shot her another dark look of disapproval.

Tamaki finally nodded, and turned, "Follow me."

* * *

"So what do we do now?" Naruto asked, after they had settled in their rooms. "And how are we getting through the week with only our clothes and weapons?"

"We wait." Itachi said simply, "I lied about the week. We should be done in three days."

"How about training though?"

"If you want to train…" Itachi picked up a leaf, tipped Naruto's head backwards and placed it on her forehead. "Concentrate your chakra to your forehead and keep the leaf floating slightly above it. It's a good concentration exercise."

"Fine." She said through gritted teeth as she went cross-eyed trying to focus on the leaf.

There was a loud crash as the window was smashed. Naruto jumped up with a yelp. Itachi sat quietly and scanned the room. He got up methodically and removed a kunai with a note attached to it from a table.

Tamaki burst through the door, "What was that?"

Itachi waved the kunai with note attached, "Nothing, just our _clients_ saying hello."

"O-ok…" He fled back out the door as if the Kuromaru gang itself had just crash-landed into the room.

A sense of anticipation was filling Naruto. _Hey it's my first mission. My first real mission…and it's out of Konoha..._

Itachi opened the note and read it quietly. He folded it up impassively after finishing it, and tossed it at Naruto, who opened it eagerly with trembling fingers. On it, in almost illegible scrawl, read:

_Tomorrow, 12, Village Bridge. Let's see how good you brats are. We're watching your every step. Don't think you can run. If you try, we will kill you. Kuromaru Gang._

Itachi lifted his eyebrow at her when she finished reading. "Well?"

"I…uh. What do we do?" Naruto asked. "Should we go or not…I think it's a better idea to stay home."

Itachi leaned forward and stared into her eyes piercingly. "Do you understand what this note means?"

"N-no?"

"Ambush." His eyes seemed to light up at the word.

"There's only two of us." Naruto pointed out.

"Have you heard of kage bunshin? No? I will teach you. Watch the seals…"

* * *

The next morning, Itachi and Naruto headed out of the house, both smiling widely. They were fully geared up and ready to fight. Itachi checked his wrist as they walked.

"Its 11.30." He almost sang. "We have half an hour."

Naruto skipped next to him in a happy-go-lucky way and began twirling kunai around in her fingers. "Yeah. Don't wanna be late!"

"No!" Itachi giggled, "Can't keep the enemy waiting, can we?"

There was a rustle of leaves as the nin sent to ambush them on the way began moving through the tree-tops in pursuit.

The two continued on, completely oblivious, happily leading the way into the forest as the nin followed.

Meanwhile, the door of the apartment opened again, and Itachi's head reached out. "All clear." He whispered to Naruto, who grinned widely and followed him out of the house. "Plan success." She murmured to him.

The two began their languid way towards the same bridge.

In the tree above them, there was another rustle.

* * *

The happy-go-lucky pair reached the edge of the bridge, which was surrounded with a small woodland

"Hey!" Itachi shouted unrealistically, "They're not here yet!"

"Don't be so sure of that, brat." Two nin jumped out of the tree, both wielding huge swords. "And we're not falling for your ruse."

"What ruse?" Itachi acted confused and gave a big smile that did not agree with his normal facial features.

"This ruse." Came a voice from above them. Another two nin leapt down, carrying Itachi and Naruto, who had been tightly tied up and were struggling ferociously. They threw the two to the ground roughly and kicked them. "You think you could fool us with your joke of a bunshin decoy and ambush plan? Oldest trick in the book, you idiots."

"This is too easy." Remarked another nin nastily, and dispatched a pair of kunai at the first pair, who gave surprised looks as soon as the kunai hit them with dull thumps, and vanished in puffs of smoke; the faux Itachi momentarily turning into a very dead looking Naruto first.

"Argh Naruto!" Shouted Itachi, "Why did you make me so happy! You Idiot!"

"How should I know! You look much better when you're happy anyway!" Naruto shouted back, stifling giggles.

"Hah. Arguing in your last moments brats?" One of the nin drew a vicious scimitar, "This is the end."

The two pinched their eyes closed tightly as the blade flashed towards them.

"Is that so?" Came a voice from behind them. The nin turned and saw Itachi's head suspended in midair. His eyes were red. They gasped in dismay as they heard the 'Itachi' and 'Naruto' whom they had tied up burst into clouds of smoke with soft 'poufs'. They tried to turn back and look but suddenly found that they couldn't move their eyes from Itachi's piercing red pupils.

"Oldest trick in the book, you idiots!" Naruto said cheerfully as she swung out of a nearby tree. Behind her, a whole army of Narutos appeared, and began flooding the clearing. They gathered in a circle surrounding the four nin and raised their arms as their respective clone Ginjis sprang out and wrapped the four in a forest of tough tendrils. The scimitars were no match for the tough vines, that stripped away the nin's weapons. Then, ignoring their choked cries, the vines strangled them till they were unconscious, and promptly dumped them one by one into the water beside the bridge. The water gave soft plops and soft ripples as the four sank to certain death.

Itachi frowned. "That was my battle."

"What were you going to do?" Naruto asked cheekily, "Glare them to death?"

"Precisely…" The crimson in Itachi's eyes faded away and gave way to the normal black.

Naruto shook her head, sat down on the floor to relax and snorted. "So that's all?"

"We're here to exterminate them. Not pick off the ranks."

The air had become slightly cooler around them. Naruto wiped her nose. "Damn this weather. I could swear that someone was deliberately making a mist to-HEY" Her eyes widened as a figure of a man suddenly appeared before her and Itachi, "Don't tell me I was right…"

Itachi didn't bother offering a reply to that.

Naruto squinted through the mist at the blurry figure and scowled. "Who are you?"

"Eh…" Said the figure in a very masculine voice, ignoring her question, "If it isn't the Child Prodigy, Uchiha Itachi…"

"Momochi Zabuza, we've met." Itachi replied tonelessly.

Naruto seethed. _Stop acting so cool. _She debated whether or not to get up from her spot on the ground. _Nah. _Ginji crept down her long sleeves, plunged underground soundlessly, and began navigating his way towards the Zabuza guy.

"I'm surprised that old man could afford ninja, especially one like you. What's with that child with you?" Naruto felt Zabuza's gaze although she couldn't see his face clearly. It was filled with killing intent that fixed her to the spot. Ginji paused underground, reluctant to go on.

"We are of one class now." Itachi informed him. "The girl is someone I picked up on the way."

Zabuza drew a deep breath, "Missing nin, Uchiha Itachi? With a tool no less."

There was a light, unamused smile on Itachi's lips as he nodded at Zabuza, "Indeed." Naruto noticed that although his eyes were still black – a sign of peace, the skin on his fingers was stretched taut, as if a kunai would appear there at any moment. _A tool, am I? _Naruto felt a momentarily flash of anger.

"I have no reason to fight you." Zabuza chuckled a little, "Why uphold useless values like loyalty and trust when you have renounced your ninja code? You might as well join us."

Naruto watched, wide-eyed for Itachi's response to this. Itachi's hand slackened for a second, and then tightened all of a second. She needed no further prompting. Ginji shot out of the ground and grabbed Zabuza's legs in a tight grip before he could jump away. _Gotcha…_

There was a kunai in Itachi's hand before Zabuza had registered what happened. He let the kunai fly, hitting Zabuza in the forehead. The mist cleared a little as the mist nin gave a wry grin before collapsing into a puddle of water.

_Where? _Naruto's eyes widened as she felt a sudden presence behind her. _Shit, Ginji, quick, quick, retract…_

"What a useful tool." Zabuza rasped nastily from behind her, "Plant manipulation…But it seems like you haven't been trained in speed." He swung his sword, but was blocked by Itachi's katana. The Uchiha's eyes were red.

"You know…" Itachi murmured as the two leapt apart, "I could kill you easily…"

"Don't be so sure of that, brat!" Zabuza roared. The two met with another clash, Itachi moving in a controlled way, releasing only enough energy to block or attack, Zabuza attacking and hacking with raw power.

"You are hired are you not? It should be easy enough to betray this weakling group." Itachi replied, meeting Zabuza's eyes questioningly. He flashed out of existence for a second and suddenly he was behind Zabuza, holding a kunai to his throat. Zabuza chuckled and collapsed into a puddle of water and appeared behind Itachi, holding a kunai to his throat.

A smirk quirked on Itachi's lips as Zabuza noticed the exploding tag stuck on his body, a second late.

**Huh, exploding clones. **Kyuubi remarked to himself as he watched Zabuza being blown backwards into the water through Naruto's mind. The mist nin landed on the water, slipped a little, made a few athletic backflips and landed firmly on his two legs on the water.

_Standing on water? _Naruto wondered, _How would you do that? _

Itachi was nowhere to be seen.

"Itachi!" Zabuza roared, "Come out!" When there was no response, he sneered, "Heh, if you don't…" Quick handseals were formed, causing the water to churn. A dragon twisted and writhed out of the water, and aimed itself at Naruto.

_Shit. _The girl leapt out of the way just as the huge head crashed into the concrete beside her, creating a gaping hole. _Phew. I need to do something…but I don't know any seals…Except…_

_**Kage bunshin no Jutsu!**_She shouted out loud, eliciting a simultaneous round of 30 pops as her clones appeared. "Go get him!"

Zabuza ploughed through all the clones like an ox, blade swinging left and right, and heading straight for Naruto herself. _Well damn…seedlings don't grow in concrete…._

_I…what do I do…I have to run…_ Naruto got up and leapt out of the way as the sword blurred in speed and buried itself into the ground with a resoundingly high-pitched sound. Zabuza growled and wrenched his sword out.

"I'll kill you first brat…" He said menacingly at Naruto, who backed away slowly. _Where is Itachi? _

_If this goes on…_She back-flipped in the way she'd seen Zabuza do and balanced herself delicately on the railings of the bridge. The man roared like a wild beast and suddenly blurred out of sight.

_Shit…_Naruto leapt down from her perch. _Where the hell is he…Not left…not right…under? _She spun around. _Not behind either. _There was a soft whistling, and Naruto had barely looked up when she saw the sword flashing towards her neck. _Shit shit shit…_She closed her eyes as she felt the ground rock beneath her, causing her to fall backwards.

When she opened them, she was lying on her back…and Zabuza was suspended half a metre or so above her, sword and all bound tightly by Ginji's coils. His hands were held apart so he couldn't make seals.

_Heh…Ginji acted by himself. _Naruto stifled a giggle at the dangerous man suspended comically above her. "Argh!" He snarled.

_How long can Ginji hold this? _She felt the mental tiredness seeping into her system. _Not long, apparently…_ She got up hastily and leapt away, Ginji prolonging himself as she moved. There was a resounding thump as Ginji fell, still tightly wrapped around Zabuza and his sword.

Zabuza's muscles bunched as he began struggling against the vines. _Uh oh _Thought Naruto. _Looks like Ginji, chakra-enhanced or not, cannot hold up for much longer. _She released her hold on Zabuza and allowed Ginji to rapidly retract himself as she retreated rapidly. All was good until she felt a dead-weight attached to the end of Ginji. Zabuza had latched onto the tendril and was grinning maniacally at her.

Ginji struggled, sending hot waves of pain and soreness up Naruto's own arm. _Damn...He's too strong…I can't get out…And I can't do close range…All I can do is…_

_I'm sorry Ginji…_

She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, drew out a kunai and bit back tears of pain as she severed the plant arm at the edge of her sleeve. There was a tiny scream in her head, painful and inhuman. Ginji relayed his thoughts of hurt and the strange feeling of his insides being exposed to air. Naruto felt the strangeness in her arm, tingling strangely as Ginji's sap dripped out with the same feeling as her own blood seeping out of a wound.

The same warm, wet, slippery feeling… She reached a hand up and grasped the end of the plant's trunk and tried to stop the sap from coming out. It stuck to her hand and she found that she couldn't pull her palm away; it was as if her palm was glued to the severed end of the trunk.

_What's this? _

**Want help now? **

_Shit…not from you, fox. _Naruto gritted her teeth as she tried to ignore the demon and tear her hand away from the plant.

**Screw what you think. Think of this as a gift. **

_No! _Naruto shouted inwardly as she felt the familiar red chakra pulsing within her chest. It induced a feeling of evil, feverish heat seeping out across her chest. _Stop this…_

**Fuck you, human. **A small gleaming white object formed before her. Naruto reached out and grabbed it instinctively. It was small and sharp, and fitted in her palm. _What am I supposed to do with this retarded thing, chuck it at him? _

**It's a fox fang, you bloody fool. **

_I don't care. _Naruto casually raised her hand and launched the object at the water. It seemed to shoot out of her hand at its own accord and plunge itself into the water. _Shit, what happened? It jumped. _

**Blood in the water, sweetheart. It's my fang's main attraction. **

_Blood? _Naruto thought before she swore again and leapt out of the way as Zabuza, who had disentangled himself, ran at her and sent his sword crashing into the ground beside her. He wrenched it out. "You've run for enough, brat."

Naruto yanked her hand off Ginji with enough force as she could. Pain filled her other arm as blood flooded her hand. The skin of her palm had attached itself to the plant and turned a pale translucent green as it moulded itself firmly to the end of the plant. Her own palm healed rapidly, stinging her slightly as the skin on her palm reformed, with a slight green tinge to it.

_Shit it hurts…it feels like a gigantic, palm sized splinter is buried under my skin. _She gripped her hand with the other tightly to lessen the pain.

There was a gleam of light in the water as the fang shot back out all of a sudden. It seemed to glow with a malevolent, red power, and suddenly, there was a horrifying howl as a large, ferocious fox, five times as big as Naruto, burst out of the water and roared at the sky.

**Blood, the source of life. **

_What the hell? _

**It's your animal summoning contract. The Fang summons foxes. **

_I didn't feel the chakra drain. _Naruto hissed in her mind.

**My fang is powered by **_**my**_** chakra, and is motivated only by blood. **

Naruto watched as the fox pounced at the surprised Zabuza, who leapt out of the way and chopped at its legs. The fang slapped itself firmly into Naruto's hand and refused to leave, no matter how hard she threw it.

There was a satisfied purr at the back of her mind. Naruto noticed the new presence and realised that it was as impersonal as Ginji, and seemed more dead than alive. _**Blood…**_ It murmured to her.

She felt a sudden urge to vomit, and fell to the ground, coughing violently as the bridge rocked under the weight of the fox. _**Blooood…**_The revolting voice purred again, arousing a the seductive but revolting feeling in Naruto's chest that could be compared to the feeling one gets as they torture an insect by plucking its legs off one by one – curiosity combined with disgust.

A sick feeling of nausea was building up in her stomach, and her head was buzzing strangely. _Sh-shit…_She clutched her stomach and coughed up mouthfuls of metallic blood.

There was a satisfied chuckling at the back of her mind, which only served to worsen the pounding headache, Naruto felt as if blood was going to start coming out of her eyes and ears. _Damn…I can't hold such a large amount of malevolence in my mind. _

_**Blood…I need…to feed. **_

Spurred on by a dizzy determination, she staggered to her feet and blinked blearily ahead, not seeing much as her eyes began tearing at the pain. The buzzing grew steadily louder and more demanding. She clutched her head and felt a sudden pain as the fang tried to leap out of her hand and made a faint stab at her head. The buzzing subsided for a split second when the fang made contact with the small wound it'd opened in her scalp, but returned at full force when she snatched her hand away.

_So that's what it wants…_She pulled the fang from her hand and, without so much as a thought, she made a wild stab at her own arm, crazed by the unbearable buzzing.

The effect was instantaneous, the buzzing stopped, and although she felt slightly weak as she felt the blood being drawn from her arteries, she found she could think clearly again. It was as if a screen had been lifted away from her mind.

Soon, the presence died away from her mind, and she pulled the fang from her numb arm. She glared for a while at the small object sitting smugly in her palm, emitting that reddish glow, and thought briefly of smashing it into the ground. But before she even tried, she knew that she wouldn't be rid of it so easily. In the end, she wrapped it up in gauze and slipped it uneasily into the pocket where she stored her kunai, where it pulsed slightly and warmly against her leg.

The fox had Zabuza in its jaws, and was shaking its great head in attempt to break the mist-nin's back.

She walked over slowly and quietly and retrieved the great sword, dragging it towards where she'd been sitting so she could seal it into a scroll.

Itachi suddenly appeared before her, looking worse for wear, with little slashes and bruises on his skin. She summoned up a little strength and lifted her head wearily, "Where the hell were you." She noticed the effeminate boy slung over his back. He was barely older than her, and looked like he had been beaten up badly.

"Found a spy in the tree. An accomplice of Zabuza." Itachi told her,

Naruto gaped at him for a few seconds, appalled, "You left me here by myself? I could have been killed!"

Itachi shrugged, flicking his eyes over to observe the fox, who was feasting on Zabuza's remains. "You look like you did fine. Besides, I placed a genjutsu on Zabuza's mind as soon as our eyes met, so that he felt weaker and slower than he actually was. I'm not so inefficient that I would just leave you behind without a thought…"

Naruto recalled the moment when Itachi'd called at the man and asked him to quit. _Smart…_ There was warmth in her chest. _At least he does care…_Outwardly, she said, "I'm not fine." She rummaged in her pocket and pulled out the fang, "I've got this screaming in my head for blood, Ginji's injured and-"

"Save the talking." Itachi remarked. "You're too tired to fight further. Let's go home."

"Home?" Naruto asked stupidly, her tiredness making her slow.

"Dwelling place." Itachi bit out sarcastically. "The location of your _habitat."_

_Hey…that counts as a joke, right?_

* * *

**Oh God…That took ages. I was so sleepy when I wrote this. Like? Be assured, Sasori and Dei-dei-chan will arrive soon. =]**

**I have no idea what to do with Haku…bear with me. And here comes a bit of Itachi POV…**

** Charel **


	4. Prologue: Part 4

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Prologue: Part Four**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**And here's the re-write of chapter 4!**

**My computer had better not break down and lose this stuff…(And if this ends up on FF-net, then it evidently didn't xP)**

**Summary of this Story:**

**Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.**

**

* * *

**

As Itachi had predicted, the mission was over in less than three days. Naruto felt surreal as they walked back to the village. _It's barely been a week since I left Konoha, yet I feel like my entire life has been changed. _

The fang pulsed lightly against her thigh. It had been dormant ever since its first 'debut'. Ginji seemed to have recuperated well, and had grown new tendrils. Naruto looked up at Itachi, who was impassive as ever, with a new type of respect.

_And this guy… He's strong. And for some strange reason, he cares, I can feel it. I…I think I have a friend. I am important to someone…I hope…_

Itachi flicked his eyes over to her in a faintly irritated way, "What?"

"Just wondering if we're friends, Itachi-san."

The boy stopped abruptly, his brow creasing as he considered what Naruto had said. Naruto stopped indecisively beside him. He stared at her unfathomably for a while, contemplating what to say. After a long and pensive silence, he finally nodded. "Yeah." He said softly, and resumed walking. Naruto started forward and glanced at him, catching the small, unsure smile, just as it flickered briefly over his face.

She grinned to herself.

**Idiot. **

_Feel the loooove…_

(A.N.: Watch me attempt to change POV's…)

* * *

The village was in uproar when they arrived. Apparently, a messenger hailing from Konoha had just arrived bringing bad news. There was excited, fearful whispering from all around them. Heated debates and conspiracy theories were brewing in nearly every bar and social area. The news spread like wildfire, and Itachi and Naruto arrived at the peak of it. The entire village was frenzied.

And this apparently included Shoujo, who jumped up as soon as they entered. "We've just received the news! The entire Uchiha clan was murdered, except of the youngest member, a boy named Sasuke-"

Itachi's eyes snapped over to Naruto, who seemed to be coming to realisations and drawing some conclusions. The whole thing was arousing unwanted memories. Damn stupid messengers who travelled so slowly.

"Come to think of it…" Shoujo's eyes twinkled as they settled on him. "You're called Itachi aren't you?"

_I can't let this end like this…if he had the time, he could call 5 or so anbu units on me, and I'd be screwed…and so would Naruto_

"Are you sure you aren't U-" Shoujo stopped short as Itachi fixed him dead in the eye with a Mangekyou stare. The old man keeled over instantly, unconscious. Itachi could sense Naruto watching him as he performed the impassive move.

"Why did you-"

"Lets go, Naruto." He cut her off, and led the way towards their rooms briskly.

She caught up quickly and breathlessly, her eyes full of questions, "Is it true, what he said?"

"What do you mean?" He asked evasively.

"I mean, did you really kill the clan except of Sasuke?"

The unwanted memories were pushing at his impassive exterior, forcing him to show emotion. He frowned and turned to look at her, "Yes."

She stared back for a while. He could tell that she was thinking rapidly, and many ideas were being formed in her mind, although he couldn't tell what. Finally, she spoke a single word, "Why?"

He drew back, ignoring the question and quickly walked ahead. She caught up again. "Hey hey Itachi…By the way, what's with your eye-trick?"

"It's called the Sharingan. The bloodline of the Uchiha Clan." Itachi turned and looked at her, "It's not a trick."

"What does it do?"

"I can predict enemy movements and copy ninjutsu."

"How about making people fall unconscious?" Naruto probed inquisitively.

Itachi contemplated whether using the Mangekyou on her would teach her a thing or two about it. The prospect almost made him smile. "That was Mangekyou, a variation of Sharingan that only I have. It has different abilities to the Sharingan."

"Oh…"

Itachi stared straight ahead, and although his famously impassive façade was up, his thoughts were raging. He creased his brows as he contemplated the events of the previous days. _How is it that Naruto acquired a new skill in the space of less than an hour? A summoning contract no less. Those should take months to work on. Only someone who has been summoning foxes for years should be able to call upon such a huge creature without fainting. _

_Is it possible that I've underestimated her? _Itachi frowned. If so, what else had he over-looked? She could be as powerful as him, for all he knew. He'd heard all the stories of the child genius' who had worked secretly and reached levels never heard of before. Naruto could be one of those. After all, one did not acquire skills like summoning overnight…

The only way to find out was to fight her…push her to her limits…

_But then…I've gained her trust. It's still fragile now...And if I lose it…_

"Hey Itachi what are you thinking about?" All of a sudden, Itachi found Naruto's face right in front of his. _If she's really that strong, she sure doesn't act like the power's taken any toll on her body…In fact, she acts like a normal kid…Quite unlike what I was like when I was eight…_

"Go away Naruto." He told her quietly, "I need to think."

"Hmph!" She crossed her arms and turned her nose up in the air. "You've been standing there forever staring forward blankly! I was just waking you up, douche!" With that, she marched off to her room, making sure she stomped loudly all the way and slammed the door behind her.

Itachi shook his head in mirth as he entered his own room. _Doesn't look S-Class to me…However, it could be a façade…She should have suffered a lot in her life…If that happened to Sasuke…He wouldn't have been able to bear it. But then, the two are essentially different. _

_I wonder what actually happened while I was fighting that Haku guy…_

There was a knock on his door. It was Shoujo, and he looked grim. Itachi looked up sullenly. "What?" _He must be a ninja too, to recover so quickly from that jolt. _

"I've just gotten news that the dangerous demon container of Konoha, a girl named Naruto recently left the Village. Is it any coincidence that just after the Uchiha Massacre, a boy called Itachi and a girl called Naruto, of roughly the same age and appearance as the reports say, turn up at my desk, asking for a job? A job that will most certainly earn them enough money to…perhaps continue on their escape?"

_He's thought this out…What a sly man…_ Itachi stared into Shoujo's eyes. Even though he was shrewd, he appeared quite harmless…There was one thing for sure; this old man had once been a ninja of at least Chuunin level. If there was a need…only if it was absolutely necessary, he would be able to kill him easily, as well as any others who knew too much…

Itachi's mind raced. It could be beneficial…

"It is no coincidence." He informed the Shoujo, "I am Uchiha Itachi and the girl is Uzumaki Naruto, the container of the Demon Fox Kyuubi."

_Let's see what his response to this is…_

The old man seemed unperturbed; as if having a Demon Cage and a mass-murderer living with him was perfectly normal. In fact, he seemed almost delighted. "An S-class nin, one almost as powerful as the Sannin, at my service, and with him, the greatest power seen in the history of ninja-kind sealed within a small girl…"

"Listen old man, this is not a marketing opportunity." Itachi cut in.

Shoujo seemed amused, there was a knowing look in his shrewd eyes as they darted around the room as he formulated plans, "I am prepared offer you a contract."

"I'm not interested."

"Listen. I was once a Konoha nin. I gave up my headband to live peacefully outside of the village. I was once a comrade of Sarutobi. Believe it or not, I was once the head of a family specialising in weapons."

_Ah…that family…the heir of which is a young girl Naruto's age…Tenten…_

"What I am saying is, that while others believe that you are a cold-blooded killer with no qualms; a traitor to the village who murdered his clans for gratuitous means, I know better." Black eyes met brown.

Itachi bristled, "Don't assume you know anything about me."

"I know who _you_ are and _what_ you are doing…Weasel."

Itachi's head snapped up at the mention of his code-name. It could be a coincidence…

"Don't take it as a coincidence that Sarutobi strategically placed me in this village. That old man is no fool. Every step he takes is taken for the good of events that will probably take place more than 5 years into the future. You are, unfortunately, one of them."

Itachi took a deep breath. _I am twelve. I am the oldest surviving Uchiha. I come from one of the most prestigious clans of Konoha…I will not fall for stupid tricks like this so easily. _

_I am twelve. _The age sounded immature to even himself. _I am only twelve. I should be on a genin team and green behind the years. I should have never seen death yet. Instead, pushed by the ambitions of my family, I have killed more than I can count, and can do so without thinking, I am an ex-Anbu Captain… I am a man in a child's body…_

_I need no one…_Itachi told himself. _Yet…_

"Fine, let's listen to this contract of yours."

"It is a three year contract. You fight for me, and in return I'll keep your identity secret and train that girl."

"What good can _you_ do? Training her?"

"I am a weapons master am I not?"

_Akatsuki will soon become impatient…_Itachi considered. _Yet…what are promises to me, now that I am a traitor-nin? I can throw off this man's promises easily and just leave. He should know better than to speak…These are empty threats that he proposes. My identity…I am too powerful for the majority of the ninja-verse to require my name to be hidden. _

"Fine…I accept."

Shoujo rose to leave, "Don't think you can escape from this contract. Naruto is still genin level, and while I cannot fight you, I can extinguish her life easily."

"I don't care." Itachi shot back.

"Oh, believe me, Uchiha, you care, and you care quite a lot. The girl's more similar to you than you think."

The door closed with a soft click.

* * *

Itachi had barely finished meditating when Naruto stumbled into the room, panic written clearly over her face. "Itachi!"

He opened one eye in annoyance, "What now?"

She all but shoved the fox fang straight in his face, trying to disengage it from her hand, it was glowing red. "It wants blood!"

Itachi stared at the fang, "What is this thing?"

"It's Kyuubi's fang! And it wants blood! And it's driving me crazy!"

_I see…_Itachi breathed a mental sigh of relief. _So perhaps she isn't one of those secret geniuses…This is the work of the fox…That's even worse though…The thing needs to be controlled. From what I can see, its completely controlled by the physical manifestation of Fox Chakra. It's the fox' direct link to the outside world…If I'm not mistaken, demons can anchor parts of their soul to objects linked to their chakra…and with enough preparations, they can summon themselves to the objects._

_It's like the technique like that of the Fourth…who could perform a Shunshin from behind the bars of a locked cell, because he'd left objects linked to his chakra outside. _

_The genius of a Demon fox is not to be underestimated…To be able to sneak out such a large object containing so much spiritual significance and malevolent power…_

_I need to break the chakra connection between the fang and the fox' chakra…_

He took the fang from Naruto's hand, it jolted in his hand and tried to bite into his flesh. He wrestled the fang away from his wrist and held it tightly in his hands. Naruto blanched, as if someone had just struck her at the side of her head.

"Naruto!" He shouted, "Don't fall unconscious, stay awake! If you fall unconscious, Kyuubi will be able to come out because he has an anchor to the human world already!"

"I don't know what to do! It's screaming in my mind and I can't bear it!" She clutched at her head, and fell to her knees, coughing and panting vigorously.

_It's trying to take over…_

"I'm going to seal this thing!" He said loudly, hoping that, in the Recesses of Naruto's head, the fox would hear his threat.

Naruto began convulsing violently.

_Shit…never sealed a demonic object before. _He pulled out a kunai and swiftly flicked it over his finger, and began drawing a ring of symbols on the white paper of a scroll he'd pulled out for the purpose of chakra exercises. He slammed the fang into the middle of the symbols. It twitched and struggled but wasn't able to move more than an inch. _Blood seals always work the best…_

_Always give up something important…_ He recalled his lessons in sealing objects.

_It's better to bind your object to something that had once been alive…One example of good sealing, is the monk who sealed his own soul and that of shukaku in the teapot. In sacrificing his soul, he and shukaku were locked together in the teapot. Had he only sacrificed something like a rat, it would not have been as strong. A human soul, or something close to it, is the best. Some shinobi can sacrifice limbs and create powerful seals…For example, the Phoenix of the Takigakure Waterfalls was sealed within a bottle of hero water with the right eye of their Shodaime. Although the physical form of the eye has dissolved against the force of the water, the spiritual form of it remains, locked with the phoenix. _

"Naruto, give me your hand." Without hesitating, he grabbed her arm, and, upon snatching one of Ginji's tendrils, which was flailing wildly, he cut it off. The tendril fell limp in his hand. He placed the tendril outside of the circle and drew another ring around it.

The fang continued to twitch, not completely restrained. Itachi was not satisfied.

_I have twin Katana…_ He pulled one of his Katana off his back, sheath and all. _I can fight with one. _With that, he drew a quick blood symbols on it and laid it crosswise over the seal. The fang fell limp all of a sudden.

_And so it should, when feeling the weight of the spirit residue of generations of Uchiha who have wielded this blade. _

He slammed his hands together and made seals, then pressed down on the objects with his chakra. The three seemed to sink into the scroll, turning into ink drawings. Itachi pursed his lips in concentration as the fang tried to struggle against his hands, its red glow becoming dimmer as it assimilated with the rest of the drawing.

When he was done, Itachi noted with satisfaction that the entire seal was black. In the centre of the seal, there was the symbol for 'Demon', around which was the ring of sealing words, and around that was Ginji's tendril, which in ink form, was intricate and twisted around the entire seal. Finally, crosswise over the entire seal were the symbols for 'Spirit Blade'.

Naruto had stopped convulsing and was looking quite confused. Itachi rolled up the scroll and handed it over to her. "There."

"It stopped, what did you do to it?"

"I sealed it. If it wants to get out, it'll have to fight against my blood, the spirit-form of your plant, my blade, and the residue of the spirits of about 20 S-class uchiha."

Naruto looked doubtfully at the scroll in her hands, "Does it really do much?"

"Blood is life." Itachi told her.

"Kyuubi said that too."

"It's true." He shrugged. "I'm sealing some of my life force around the fang. It also contains the life force of your plant, and parts of souls of others. For a fang, which is dead in itself, it's more than enough. One of the strongest seals that exists, is the sacrifice of one's entire life forces. For example, Kyuubi…" He ignored Naruto's wince, "Kyuubi was sealed with the entire life-force of the fourth Hokage, and it placed you as the living guardian of the seal, meaning Kyuubi will have to fight _you _as well as the life force of the Yondaime to get out."

"Does that mean that if _I _wanted to, I could just lie down and let the Kyuubi take over?"

"Are you powerful enough to combat the Yondaime's life force?" Itachi asked sarcastically. It was obviously a rhetorical question. There wasn't a single ninja alive who could stand against the previous Yondaime.

Naruto glared and decided to disregard the rhetorical implications of the question, "Kyuubi can!"

"This is too hard to explain to you…The seal was instigated with the help of the death God and has a whole load of rules that I cannot be bothered telling you about."

"This is _my_ seal!"

"I don't care."

Naruto looked wounded, but she crossed her arms, "Hmph! Whatever!"

"Let's go train." Itachi said, as a way of making it up to her.

"Hey you serious?" Naruto leapt up, as if she hadn't just almost lost her mind, "Yippee! Let's go! Are you going to teach me stuff?"

"Yeah. For the last time. From now on, Shoujo will be taking over most of your training."

"Mou! That's unfair, Itachi! I thought you were my friend!"

* * *

There were two people waiting for them at the training fields. They wore similar black cloaks with red-lined clouds. One was red-headed and had long-lashed, honey-brown eyes, while the other possessed long blonde hair and a single blue eye – the other of which appeared to be a mechanical contraption.

Itachi started when he saw them. _Not possible…It's only been a week, they can't be that impatient…_ Naruto shrank to his sides. It appeared as though she'd noticed the dangerous amount of killing intent and chakra the two were emitting.

"Itachi." The red-head said silkily.

"Naruto, stay out of this." Itachi told the girl quietly, "These two are way above Zabuza's level and could kill you in less than a second."

"Sasori…and Deidara." Itachi replied, in the same silky tone that he only used for people of his level. "Sending two for me? I'm honoured."

"The Leader is becoming frustrated, yeah." Deidara said unamusedly, "What are you doing here? You should have come two days ago."

"It is none of your business." Itachi told them, "I will come in my own time, Akatsuki can wait." He regretted saying the name when he felt Naruto's head prick up from beside him in interest.

"Akatsuki does not wait." Sasori said softly, beautifully, dangerously. The mood of the area was rapidly becoming apprehensive. All threw S-class nin smiled at each other falsely. It was a trait of powerful nin. Every fight between two of this level was a gamble much more than that of any normal nin. It was an occasion to smile for – an occasion to be serious about the opponent. Only show-off fools used the same silky tone for weaklings.

Naruto was tensing in fear, she looked like a mouse who had accidentally found herself with three tigers who were way too powerful for her, and while she was no threat to them, they would kill her some entertainment.

_And so she realises her insignificance in a world of ninja hundreds of times more powerful as her. _

Deidara, who had been frowning at Naruto, suddenly smiled in a bright, angelic way. "Is this why? Bringing a compensation gift for your lingering around weaklings?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Deidara." Itachi said quietly, a grin was curving his lips.

"This Jinchiruuki…" Deidara intoned softly, "She's the Nine-tails, am I correct? That's quite a valuable thing to be trading for such a small offence."

Naruto appeared confused, as if she was trying to sort something out.

"What lie did you feed her, Itachi-kun?" Sasori said, watching Naruto through thick eyelashes, "She's confused. Did she assume she was going to join us as a _member?" _He hit the truth straight at the heart. "Bringing a bargaining chip so that we don't kill you…a wise move..."

Naruto had frozen as a horrified realisation began creeping into the edge of her mind.

"That is, assuming you _can_ kill me." Itachi replied. Convincing Naruto that what they were saying was untrue. It no longer mattered. A kunai appeared in his hands and his eyes bled red. Deidara was reaching into his pockets.

"Stop." Sasori interrupted sleekly, "We're not here to fight. We could easily just take that Jinchiruuki…We are here to make sure you are coming."

Itachi nodded, "You can expect me in an year or so."

"An year? For what purpose?" Deidara asked.

"I have some promises to fulfil to an old friend."

Knowing grins were shared. Naruto inclined her head, disturbed. So this was the world of S-Class nin. Killing was just another game. They could all act at ease, as if they were friends, because they were all familiar with each other, and knew that they were the only ones who could kill each other.

Somehow, the twisted logic was not making sense in her head.

"Very well." Sasori conceded, "We will see you then."

And then the two disappeared.

Itachi's smile had vanished by the time he turned back to regard Naruto. "Come on. We are not staying here."

"Didn't they just leave?"

"Never trust the word of a ninja." Itachi told her, "not even me." He added as an afterthought.

Naruto paused in her steps. Her eyes had darkened, "Itachi, this Akatsuki…" She bit her lip, "You were lying about the whole restricted by Village thing weren't you? This Akatsuki is a criminal organisation isn't it?"

Itachi tried to shrug nonchalantly, "Yeah."

"What do they mean by bargaining chip?"

Itachi debated whether or not he should tell her. "Akatsuki is an organisation that collects tailed Beasts, Naruto."

"Like me?"

"Not you, they only want Kyuubi."

"Then why?" Naruto asked blankly, her face was almost as impassive as Itachi's normal façade, "Why did you take me to this place? They're going to kill me aren't they?"

Itachi regarded her profound expression on his face. "You will not understand. Some things are done for the greater good."

"What good?" Naruto demanded. "There's no good coming out of a criminal organisation getting their hands on Kyuubi. Why did you seal the fang if they were going to kill me anyway? Why don't you kill me then? Right here! It should be easy!"

Her yelling was becoming tiring. Itachi sighed, "I am not going to kill you for my own personal reasons."

"Like what?" She demanded. He could tell that she was restraining tears. What was the purpose of asking? She wouldn't understand.

"You're eight." He told her seriously. How was he supposed to explain this? He had an eight year old brother he'd neglected so he was adopting another kid to lessen the guilt?

"What do you mean?" She yelled, frustrated as he turned and began walking away.

He turned to her in annoyance and fixed her in the eye with Mangekyou. "Naruto, just shut up about this matter."

The two walked back to their rooms in an uncomfortable silence.

They both had had kunai hidden in the recesses of their sleeves, alert of attacks from each other, but were too upset about the disintegration of the prospective friendship to start an attack of their own.

* * *

**And there's the end of your prologue! Next chapter is the REAL STORY. =] Not saying that this bit is fake…you can tell its sorta rushed right? Sorry T_T**

**;3 Charel**


	5. Chapter 1

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Chapter One**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**CHAPTER ONE! YAY!**

**My computer had better not break down and lose this stuff…(And if this ends up on FF-net, then it evidently didn't xP)**

**Summary of this Story:**

**Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.**

**

* * *

**

Sandaime sat at the meeting, barely listening. The chuunin exams were coming up yet again, and this year it was at Konoha again, but he wasn't particularly concerned. He was thinking of Naruto.

She'd been gone for almost eight years now, and he hadn't gotten even a single piece of correspondence from her, except of the strange boy who'd arrived at the gates shortly after she left, claiming that she'd sent him. She should be sixteen now…the same age as Sasuke and the rest of the famous Konoha twelve.

He wondered if she'd been following the news. If she knew that the chuunin exams of the Konoha Twelve had passed relatively uneventfully, and they'd thwarted Orochimaru's plans of wars although he'd left behind a mark on Sasuke. Orochimaru had been quite dormant for the past three years, besides the scuffle here and there. Sandaime could almost feel the tension building up around him.

Orochimaru was definitely planning something. And this something would most definitely happen in this Chuunin exam, which his 12 year old grandson would be taking part in.

"Sandaime-sama! Orochimaru will definitely strike during this exam!"

So it seemed like the elders had caught on. "We must brief our forces on this. I will distribute anbu in the crowd. Our alliance with Sand is sure, and I have gotten in touch with the Kazekage. He is willing to help us, it seems."

"That is not enough! We must call in reinforcements! We must contact Jiraiya and Tsunade!"

"I have already contacted them. But I have an even better idea. I'm welcoming back an old friend."

"Who?" The elders leaned forward, intrigued. Sandaime always seemed to have secrets up his sleeve. Who was this friend? Was it a battle-aged veteran? Or a genjutsu sorceress, perhaps?

Sandaime smiled serenely as a messenger bird landed on his finger, ready to perform a job. "I have the letter scripted already." He tied the tiny message to the bird's leg.

"I'm going to call on Uzumaki Naruto."

The outrage that followed was almost comical.

* * *

Naruto took the message from the bird's leg. _This had better not be an exploding note. _She'd left Shoujo when she was 12, and for the past 4 years, she'd been freelancing, visiting various villages, making acquaintances and collecting Jutsu. Itachi on the other hand, had left her for Akatsuki.

Her mood darkened at the thought. _I loved you, asshole. I thought that maybe we were good enough friends for me to be able to deter you from leaving. _

_But you left anyway. You left ME_

But that was no concern of hers. She was almost as powerful as he now. Unless he'd become super-powerful in the years they'd been apart. Ginji unravelled the message for her and held it out to show her. Over the years, he'd grown stronger and quicker. She now had a new addition on her other arm, one of the 3rd generation, chakra-altered offspring of her first insect eating plants. It was called Mika.

_Pfft. _She thought after reading the message. _Konoha needs help? _

_My help? _

She reread the message.

_Dear Naruto,_

_I fear that Konoha is in danger. Orochimaru will certainly strike during the chuunin exams. I am asking a small favour of you to come to the chuunin exams and assist in our protective forces. If you come, I will see you in three days, at 9 am, in my office._

_Sandaime _

"What do you think Mika?" The plant gaped her venus flytrap jaws and snapped at the note. "Paper doesn't taste very good, you know?" With a daring snap, Mika nabbed the note from Naruto's hand and swallowed it quickly, giving a satisfied burp when she'd finished with it.

"Any chance I can get you to eat this scroll?" Naruto swung the scroll in which the fang was sealed in front of Mika's jaws. She recoiled immediately and made a strange hissing sound while waving her tendrils. Ginji's tendril wrapped around the scroll and tucked it back into her bag.

"Do you think I'll actually be allowed to supervise over the exams? That'd be very cool, actually, considering the fact that I'm not even a registered ninja. Hey that makes me illegal doesn't it? I wonder what the old man would think of that…"

She paused and listened to the silence. "I wish you guys could talk."

The sentence met more silence.

"I've totally lost my proverbial marbles haven't I?"

**Yeah you have. **

"Argh shut up furball!" Naruto paced around the clearing she had been training in and sat down on the grass. _What should I do? _

**Become depressed, release my fang, and commence world destruction**

_Great idea, fox! Why don't I just suicide while I'm doing that? _

**That sounds even better. **

_You asshole… _Naruto jumped up all of a sudden. "I have it! I'll call on Gaara!"

* * *

"Who are you?" Temari surveyed the girl before her suspiciously. She had long blonde hair, which was held together near the base in what appeared to be an ornamented metal clasp that swung at her knees. She wore an white coat reminiscent to Tsunade, with orange edges and swirl design on the back, black shorts and sandals. There was an enamel swirl design pendant around her neck. Her blue eyes, which were currently staring into Temari's were a brilliant shade of cerulean.

"I'm Gaara's friend." The girl declared politely with a smile. "I'm called Naruto."

"I see…" Temari noticed the large scroll swung over Naruto's back, as well as the various scrolls shaped bulges all over her clothing. She also noticed, with slight surprise, what seemed to be _vines_ winding their way down Naruto's arms. Subconsciously, she leant closer to inspect the vine. All of a sudden, a venus-fly trap leant out from under the sleeve and snapped at her nose with its jaws. Temari withdrew in alarm.

Naruto scratched her head in embarrassment, and scolded the plant, "Mika! That's bad manners!"

_She's a ninja…from all the scrolls she's carrying. And those plants…although I've never met a nin who fought with plants, I guess its feasible to have a plant-specialist. But since she's a ninja…where the hell is her forehead protector? _From what she perceived, the girl didn't have any forehead protector, meaning she'd broken the cardinal rule of having a visible forehead protector.

"Where's your headband?" She demanded "Don't you know it's against the law not to show it? Legally, I can just take you as a missing nin and kill you on the spot."

"I doubt you can kill me." Naruto replied smugly.

Temari quirked her lip at the other blonde girl. What a cocky brat. "So you admit you are a missing-nin?" She joked.

Naruto tilted her head, and a strange smile came to her lips. "I left my village before they could provide me with a headband to slash." She rejoined cheerfully.

_Wait a sec…_Temari blinked. _She basically just admitted that she was a missing nin, headband or no. According to Suna's legal procedure, its kill first, ask questions later. What village did she come from? _Her hand crept up to her fan. "It looks like I'll have to fight you."

"That would be unwise." The girl said, the smug smile still on her face. Before Temari could draw her fan, vines suddenly plunged out of the ground and wrapped themselves around the fan, tearing it off Temari's back and flinging it into Naruto's hands. "How do you fight, without your fan, hmm?"

Temari readied a kunai and jumped out of the way just as the plants on the girl's hand surged towards her. Vines suddenly sprang out of the ground and pulled her to the ground as she was landing. _What the hell? I never saw handseals! _She struggled and hacked at the vines with her kunai, only to find that they tightened around her legs.

"Hey hey!" The girl waved at her, "Don't struggle, they might break your ankles."

Temari burned in humiliation. "Screw you!" She held up her hands and began to make hand-seals, only to find her hands secured to her sides with more vines.

Naruto waggled her finger, "Don't be silly. I've already won. The ground all around you is sown with my chakra-infused seeds. If these vines hold you for long enough, your skin will shrivel from the poison on the vines."

"So kill me then!"

"I can't be stuffed!" The girl replied in frustration. "I'm not here to kill anyone! I just want to find Gaara. Where the hell is he?"

Temari saw the wave of sand before the girl did. It grabbed the vines holding her roughly and shook them free. Gaara appeared all of a sudden in the midst of the sand, which had flooded the entire alleyway and overwhelmed Naruto, who was nowhere to be seen.

He turned to her and gave a bland look, "Temari, go away. I'll deal with this girl." The sand retrieved the fan and tossed it into her arms. Temari backed away, ready to watch Gaara completely kick the girl's ass.

A vine reached out of the sand, flailed around a little and plunged back into the sand, pulling out a disgruntled Naruto, who spat out a mouthful of sand and glared. "You did that on purpose, Gaara." She pouted at the boy, who stared at her impassively for a while, before allowing the sand to retreat.

"What are you doing here, Naruto?"

Temari's eyes widened as she watched from a nearby tree. _Heh! My little brother actually knows a girl! How strange… _All retribution forgotten, she began watching in interest.

"Stop pulling an Itachi!" Naruto said, pointing a finger. "I haven't seen you for almost a year and all you give me is a mouthful of gritty dirt!"

"Stop complaining. I could have given you a Desert Requiem." Gaara corked his gourd and folded his arms.

Naruto dusted her clothes resentfully, "You wouldn't do that to an old friend. That's just plain betrayal. I'm disappointed. Really." Mika gave a sudden shudder and proceeded to vomit half digested, sand-coated insects all over the floor. Gaara flinched at the bile, then at Naruto, who had proceeded berating her plant in a high-pitched voice, "What did I teach you about puking, Mika! Burp politely first so I can move you out of the way before you…urgh."

Naruto made a disgusted face as she wiped greeny yellow plant digestive liquid from her clothes. The strong acid had eaten a hole in her shirt. Gaara snorted. "Still the same as ever."

The blonde scratched her head absentmindedly, "Talked to Haku recently?"

"No. Ice mirrors don't survive in the desert."

"I wonder _why." _Naruto replied sarcastically. "Look. Have you got any important news for me?"

"No."

"For example…the possibility of Orochimaru attacking Konoha during these chuunin exams?" Naruto gestured a little and tried to look vague.

Gaara paused uncertainly. "Since when did you care about Konoha?" His eyes narrowed all of a sudden at the girl. _Is she an impostor? _

Naruto's vines whipped out and tore up the darts of sand that had been aimed at the back of her head. There was a smug grin on her face, which told Gaara that she'd understood and predicted what he'd done.

The sand retreated, and Gaara nodded to himself. "Yeah you're the real Naruto alright…what's with the sudden change of heart?"

"Sandaime has called me back, and I'm only here to ask you if he's trying to trick me into going back just for the sake of it. You know…rejoining the village…doing a few missions…"

"Yes…I've been contacted by Sandaime about extra security measures for the Chuunin exam…"

"_You've_ been contacted? Don't you mean the Kazekage?"

"I _am_ the Kazekage." It was Gaara's turn to scratch his head, "I'm the strongest nin in the village. It's Suna Law. The council voted me in four months ago." He was quite proud as he informed her of his new position.

"Oh…well…" Naruto fought with her pride. She'd always longed for some recognition in the ninja world…But being a Kage…no, that would be too much…Why was Gaara, of all people, a Kage then?

_But I'm stronger than him! _She closed her eyes tight for a moment. _I'm not going to feel jealous…Gaara is my friend…He's one of the few people I actually talk to…Besides, it's not like I'm part of a village or anything…_

"…But I don't think there is any great threat." Gaara was saying. "Sandaime is just taking the necessary precautions for the prestigious Chuunin Exams."

"So should I go back?" she asked uncertainly.

Gaara shrugged, "It's up to you. You don't have any obligation to Konoha. Go if you want…Do you want to?" He was staring intently at her face.

Naruto scratched her gold hair and turned her eyes up at the sky in thought. _I know you're looking at me…_ "I don't know…I don't think I want to be restrained by a village…"

"_Akatsuki." He replied softly. "It's an organisation for people like us…People with potential…People who should not be restrained by a village." _

She paused and held herself very still. _I've got to forget this stuff…_ He still haunted her subconscious. _Itachi…I dream about you…I will find you…I…_

"Naruto." Gaara's hand was light and cold on her arm. His eyes burnt into hers with intense emotion as he spoke, "Stop. I know you're thinking about Itachi."

"I can't stop." She whispered softly. "I need to forget about him but I can't. I torture myself everyday thinking that he'll come back for me." Gaara's eyes narrowed momentarily. Ginji and Mika had gone limp and retracted up above her elbows. There was only Gaara's hand on her arm, announcing his calm presence to her turmoil.

_They're basically the same…the emotions, the looks, the way of speaking…if I don't look at Gaara's face, I can almost pretend Itachi's here with me…_

_That sounds horribly wrong…_

The grip tightened a little, and he shook her lightly, concern showing in his pale turquoise eyes. "Don't go back to Konoha. You'll just have bad memories. Stay here in Suna and take care of my village while I go to Konoha myself. I'll tell Hokage."

"No…" Her eyes clouded over and her brow creased, "Don't tell the old man. He'll just worry."

"When's the last time you've spoken to him or even sent a letter, hmm?"

"Never. Just don't tell."

Gaara's eyes darkened. "Sure." It was a promise that he didn't intend to keep. And he wasn't about to let Naruto find out from the emotions on his face. He drew her into his arms and hugged her loosely. She was wooden against his chest. "You're going to tell." She murmured at his fiery red hair.

"Whatever." He replied softly, annoyed at her intuitiveness, "Just shut up about this, ok?"

_He turned to her in annoyance and fixed her in the eye with Mangekyou. "Naruto, just shut up about this matter."_

She shut her eyes and let the small, glassy tear slide down her whiskered cheek. _Itachi…_

_

* * *

_

By the late afternoon, the news was all over the village.

_What a scandal! The Kazekage seen standing in a deserted alleyway, hugging an unknown girl. Was it possible that he had a secret love after all? _

Kankurou entered the room where he knew his sister would be. The two had become honorary bodyguards to their brother as soon as he'd been promoted. Not that he needed their protection…He found her absentmindedly dusting her fan.

"I thought you were watching over Gaara? What's this about a girl?" He demanded.

She looked up in boredom. "The girl? Don't believe any of the rumours about some random shop-girl from some random village. She's strong."

"So she's a ninja?" Kankurou questioned, "What village?"

She fixed her in the eye with a very serious look. "I don't understand how this could have happened, but it seems like the two are old acquaintances. I don't know when they could have met, but they look like they know each other very well. What's worse, she's not from any village."

"What do you mean? She's a missing nin?" Kankurou's face darkened almost immediately. His little brother, housing a missing nin? A rebel Kazekage breaking laws for some girl?

Temari shrugged nonchalantly, "That's what I gathered from talking to her."

"And you didn't kill her?"

"I told you…she's strong, and she's not even perturbed by all the blood in Gaara's sand."

_This could be bad…_Kankurou thought inwardly. His brother had always possessed a slightly dark streak…associating with dangerous missing-nin…would he do that? And the whole scenario of hugging a girl…that just seemed impossible to him…He couldn't see Gaara sneaking out at night to meet some anonymous girl…

"Even if you don't believe me, I'm telling you, I saw it myself, he pulled her into his arms."

Kankurou almost choked. "Are you serious? This is Gaara we're talking about. I thought he had no interest in females in general."

"Yeah…" Temari mused, "This could be bad. The elders have been arranging for an eligible Suna Girl to be found for his wife. You know the whole fuss about marrying within the village…"

"He's not going to marry any girl…you know him, he's stubborn. You don't think it could be possible that he's interested in this girl? What's her name?"

"She's called Naruto." Temari replied thoughtfully, "She's nice enough, for a missing nin. Gaara certainly _did _look interested…but I doubt she returns any of his feelings."

"Are you telling me my insomniac baby brother, I mean Gaara, as in Gaara who kills without blinking, may have a crush?"

"Yeah…" Temari nodded slowly, conspiratorially, "Oh yeah…"

The two sat, staring open mouthed at each for almost an entire minute.

* * *

The meeting room instantly quietened when Gaara entered.

The elders stood to salute the regal Kazekage in his white and purple robes, flanked by his brother and sister. The previous Kazekage stood as well, craning his over the heads of the other ninja to watch his children impassively.

In any normal meeting, the three would have entered swiftly and quietly, and the meeting would have begun without further ado. However, the strangled gasps and scandalised choking sounds from the elders signalled that this was far from a normal meeting.

Temari and Kankurou entered first, looking disgruntled. Then came Gaara, looking slightly amused. The scene that drew the most gasps was the girl who entered from behind Gaara, smiling shyly and sweetly at the elders as she nudged her way through the doorway. Her blonde hair was in plaits and her bright eyes danced gleefully at the shocked elders. She was wearing an ornamental, long-sleeved blue yukata and sandals, and didn't look in the least like the strong ninja that Temari had told Kankurou about.

The room was politely silent as the elders waited for the four to sit down. The anticipation filling the air was almost stifling. _Is this the girl he was seen with in the alleyway? _

Gaara sat on his seat at the head of the desk, looked around at the eager faces of the elders and clapped his hands as if Naruto were not sitting right beside him, "Let the meeting begin."

There was an uncomfortable silence as the elders scrutinised the girl, trying to find some way to diplomatically ask the Kazekage 'what the hell was he doing'. Finally, it was the previous Kazekage who spoke up. "Gaara." He began coldly.

Gaara's eyes flicked over in blatant boredom, "Yes Father?"

"Would you do us the honour of introducing this eminent young lady to us?" The man was barely restraining himself from launching himself across the table and giving his son a few sound thwacks on the head for spurning tradition, "And what, pardon me if I offend, she has to do with this meeting?"

"This is Naruto." Gaara replied protectively, "She's an important factor in the outcome of today's meeting."

"Family?" One of the elders spoke up.

"Uzumaki." Naruto cut in with a smile, eliciting disapproving murmurs from the brood of elders.

"Ah…" The Kazekage said softly, "I have not…heard of that name before." He prompted, expecting some elaboration on some little known family of noble lineage, or some ninja family with high connections.

Instead, Naruto flashed another grin and said, "Yeah, I doubt you have. My family name's pretty insignificant."

"Class?"

The girl blinked. _Huh? What's class? _"I…I don't quite understand."

"Job? Your family trade?"

"Ah!" Naruto caught on and nodded quickly, "Personally, I don't know any of my family. I'm an orphan." There were more shocked, criticizing looks from around the table, "My career? You could say I'm some sort of Mercenary nin. I flit around villages and make money from doing odd jobs." She shrugged at the elders, who were growing more contemptuous of her by the minute.

Kankurou met Temari's eyes questioningly. _Mercenary nin? _The term, loosely translated, meant some genin who'd failed all their exams, and decided to make a living with their meagre skills in non-ninja villages. _Weren't you talking about a missing nin? _

"Village?"

"None." Naruto replied cheerfully. Ginji snaked down her sleeve and began playing absentmindedly with her plait. There was disbelief and surprise written clearly on all the elders' faces. _That is no genin skill, and there is no live bloodline known that manipulates plants. To be able to so precisely control a plant, as if it were another limb…to be able to mask chakra from the elite council of Suna…That's no ordinary nin…_

Gaara coughed lightly, "Now that you have all become acquainted to Naruto, we shall recommence the meeting."

There were a few dissatisfied murmurs from among the elders, but they quietened eventually under Gaara's stern and almost murderous glare. "The purpose of this meeting is to discuss Suna's security plans in regards to the upcoming chuunin exams in Konoha."

"I believe we are still in Alliance with the leaf?" an elder began.

"Yes. And they have contacted us regarding their concerns about the security of their village. It is our obligation to help them out." Gaara replied.

"I suggest we send a team of anbu." Said the old Kazekage. The Elders deferred to him and waited referentially for their former leader to continue speaking, "These are times when we should be careful. One Anbu team is enough to formally declare our standing alliance. More than that would be unwise, as it would leave our village open for attack. There is also the issue of the uncertainty of whether Konoha is actually in trouble. What are that sly Sandaime's true intentions for asking us for help? For all we know, this could be a ruse for them to invade our village-"

_THWACK!_

The slam echoed all around the room. Naruto was standing, face filled with fury, and her yukata sleeves had been bunched up by Mika and Genji, who were darkly twisting and writhing around her. There was a crack in the table where she'd slammed her fist into it.

"Sandaime would never lie to you." She said quietly through gritted teeth, "You can take my word for it."

The old Kazekage looked at her coolly, "Don't presume to speak to your elders like that. You are not making any good impressions on me or any others in this room."

Gaara sighed softly, "Naruto. Sit down." The blonde sank back into her seat, burning in humiliation as Ginji and Mika shrunk back into the Yukata.

"I have a plan to propose." Gaara began, meeting every elder's eye one by one. "I myself will go to Konoha with a third of our Anbu forces as well as our genin teams and their teachers…"

The protests began, fast and furious.

"Absolutely not! This is a risk we cannot take!"

"The Kazekage must not leave!"

"That would leave Suna under-defended!"

Temari stood and silenced the table with a few loud claps. "Listen to what the Kazekage has to say."

"Konoha and Suna have become more than allies." Gaara began, "Our genin and chuunin have made close ties to those of the leaf village, and since the previous chuunin exam in Konoha, we have arranged many exchange trips between our students. Konoha and Suna are no longer just battle collaborators. We are friends. And as friends, we will risk our own safety for theirs."

There was a sullen silence around the table.

The previous Kazekage finally spoke up, "I accept your proposition. You have my vote." There were soft protests around the table that were silenced when he continued speaking, "However, when you leave, the village will be without a Kazekage. I will be happy to retake up the mantle when you are gone."

There were approving nods from around the table. If it was not for Suna Law, Gaara would not be the Kazekage - that was for sure.

"Absolutely not." Gaara's curt voice slid through the murmurs. "Instead, I elect Temari and Kankurou as joint Kazekage while I am gone."

The protests had become louder.

"Those kids?"

"We should have responsible elders in that position!"

"No respect!"

"They can't handle it!"

"Furthermore…" Gaara continued firmly, "I appoint Uzumaki Naruto here, to supervise their affairs and aid them if need be."

There was a stunned silence. Gaara might as well have said 'I elect the head of Akatsuki as the Kazekage'. Several elders had their mouths wide open. Elect a girl who had appeared out of nowhere in a title higher than Kazekage?

There was a growl deep in the old Kazekage's throat which exploded into a roar. "Gaara! You have gone too far!"

"I certainly have not." Gaara replied calmly, "I trust Uzumaki Naruto to take care of the village while I am gone."

"Who is this girl anyway? How do we have proof of her abilities, of her allegiance to us? Mercenary nin must not be trusted, they live only to devour money!"

"I have absolute trust in her abilities." Gaara responded with finality, "Temari is an authority on this matter, as she confronted Naruto and was defeated in less than ten minutes."

Shocked gasps echoed around the table.

"As for her allegiance… I have no doubt on that, as the two of us have made a pact. You can trust her word as much as mine."

"The decision has been made and the majority of the higher elders have agreed." Gaara continued icily, "Do not interfere with the Kazekage's inner circle. Just accept this decision and work for the general good of Suna."

"But-" Began one of the sour-faced elders.

"This meeting is concluded."

* * *

**Haha Hi. =)**

**It's not ItaNaru! It's not actually ItaNaru yet!**

**I'm having a last poll that PEOPLE HAD BETTER VOTE FOR *glares***

**2. Gaara**

**3. Sasuke**

**4. Sasori**

**5. Shikamaru**

**Please vote? **

Charel


	6. Chapter 2

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Chapter Two**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**WOOHOO CHAPTER 2 (I rhyme, I am so cool :D)**

**Summary of this Story:**

**Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.**

* * *

Somehow Gaara forced his point across, yet again in the next meeting, after two hours of intense arguing and glaring matches with the elders and numerous table-thumpings by Temari.

Naruto found herself sitting quietly in Gaara's guest room the next morning. Time had flown past way too quickly.

_I'm 16. _

**Captain Obvious to the rescue. **

It seemed like only yesterday when she had last seen the elusive Uchiha who haunted her dreams.

_She woke up at midnight on that night with a jolt. Something was wrong. Ginji snaked down her arm and confronted her with his leafy tendrils, as if to ask what was wrong. She felt instinctively for the clock on her bedside table, then realised she wasn't living with Shinji anymore. It'd been 2 years since she had left, but the image of her Room 12 still felt like home. She put her hand on the kunai under her pillow. _

_Something was definitely wrong. _

_She hadn't felt this strange since the night Itachi had quietly and suddenly left when she was 11._

_Her sense pricked. There was definitely someone near. She just didn't know where. Whoever it was, they didn't make a single sound. They were just 'there'._

_Who could it be? Her eyes scanned the room of the hotel. She'd only been her in Kusa for 2 days, there was no way her 'clients' could have found her already. And there was no way they were this good. This silent. This deadly…_

_Her mind went over the contents of her 'client's' file quickly. No…the alleged Demon Killer of Hanagakure should only be Chuunin level. This mission was completely secret. If he knew she was here, he was way better than she thought. In which case…_

_Her eyes narrowed. Her feet touched the floor softly and she straightened quietly, wincing at the very slight creak of the wood. Unless he had super-vision, he should only be able to see as well as her. Which meant she had a slight advantage._

_She just had to locate where he was. _

_In front? No…_

_She looked to either side. Then above…_

_Her heart began beating erratically, had she overestimated her own abilities?_

_Below? _

_There was a prickling at the back of her head. There was no way he could be behind right? Her bed was right next to the wall. _

_She whipped out a kunai and slashed behind just as a strong arm came out of nowhere and grabbed her wrist. _

_She heard the faint 'splat' of blood dripping against the floor. _

_So he was strong. But she still had an advantage, he wouldn't know about Ginji, or all the plants outside, under the floorboards and in pots in her bag. She could turn the room into a dangerous jungle in less than a minute._

_She communicated silently to Ginji, who began moving furtively. _

"_Don't even try."_

_She froze. "Who a-"_

"_Can't recognise my voice?" The voice was smooth, silky…The silky tone that you only used when you knew you were entirely in control of the situation. When you were talking to someone of your level, where there was an equal chance of either of you winning a fight with each other. _

'Sasori…and Deidara…Sending two for me? I'm honoured.'_ THAT tone._

"_I-itachi?" She squeaked, then cursed her own weakness. "What are you doing here?" She asked in a sharper voice and turned, twisting her arm forcibly out of his grasp._

_Did he want to kill her…or kidnap her for the Bastard Fox? Her mind raced at the possibilities as she stumbled forward…What the hell did he want?_

_She cleaned her bloody kunai absentmindedly on her shirt as she watched him. _

_He stood there with a strange hint of a smile on his face, not even bothered by the gaping wound on his arm. He wasn't wearing his Akatsuki cloak, and he didn't look a single year older. He was completely relaxed and his dark eyes were apathetic. _

_What's going on…? She thought uneasily. _

_The silence continued. He merely stood before her bed and watched her. _

"_What do you want?" She demanded again._

"_You've grown." He remarked. _

_She paused, uncertain. Was he going to attack? Should she attack first?_

"_What do you want with me?" she asked for the third time._

_He continued to watch her as he sank down onto her bed. "Can't I visit an old friend?" The silky tone again._

_Naruto felt awkward, standing in her nightdress and holding a bloody kunai. "Why are you visiting me? Why do you even know I'm here?"_

"_Akatsuki knows everything." Itachi replied immediately._

"_Ok then." Naruto glanced at the blood on her nightdress. It was going to stain. "What does Akatsuki want from me?" Her skin prickled again._

"_Calm down. You're safe for a few more years." Itachi said in a matter-of-fact way. "I just wanted to see you."_

_Liar! Her mind screamed. He wants something, or else he wouldn't be here. "Oh? Do I owe you something?"_

_He stood up all of a sudden. Too sudden. Naruto took two steps back instinctively. He surged forwards. _

_When was he this fast? Naruto thought as his hands found her shoulders, gripped them and pushed her into the wall. The kunai clattered to the ground._

_She found herself face to face with his chest and felt incredibly short all of a sudden. She looked straight up into his bloody red eyes in shock. _

"_You…" he stated calmly, "You owe me your life." _

"_What are you talking ab-" She began before darkness took over. _

_When she woke up on her bed, he was gone. The only evidence he had been there was the kunai on the ground and the huge bloodstain on her nightdress. She hurriedly got dressed and opened the window, and looked down. _

_She found the Demon Killer of Hanagakure stone-cold dead, spreadeagled outside her window. _

"Naruto?" The door clicked open.

She looked up. "Good morning Gaara."

The red head eased himself in. He was clad in travelling gear and was looking tired, but his eyes were warm.

"Leaving already?" It had only been two days since the last meeting, where the elders had finally grudgingly accepted her.

"Yeah." He sat down next to her on the bed. "Are you sure there is nothing you would like to tell the Hokage?"

"Nothing." She repeated stubbornly. "I'll protect your Village, and you protect mine. It's a promise."

"Your village?" He pushed her lightly.

"My… Gaara. Don't."

He smiled faintly, very faintly. "I have a bad feeling about leaving my village to you. What if I come home to find that it's an overgrown jungle?"

"It'd be an improvement." She retorted, "I think Mika likes it here." Said plant was trying to chew a kunai. "Must be all the desert bugs."

"No…I think she's just found new things to chew. She tried to eat Kankuro's puppet." Gaara said. His elder brother had been quite chuffed.

"It looked like a bug!"

Gaara chuckled and scratched his head a little. "I came here to talk to you."

"About?"

"The imminent attack on Konoha." Gaara sighed. "The Hokage's old. If Orochimaru intends to invade, it'll be a giant attack. I have a bad feeling about it."

Naruto looked away and pretended she was interested in the view outside the window. Sand, sand and more sand. "What feeling?"

"In the event of a giant attack, the Hokage might not survive. He's incredibly strong for an old man but…Orochimaru is strong too, and he's younger. And there is no way he'd play by any rules of honour."

"You are telling me Hokage doesn't stand a chance."

Gaara exhaled sharply. "Of course not. I'm just worried he might not make it. He's still very fond of you…he thinks of you as a grand-daughter. It's not right…"

"I don't want to go back."

"Write a letter." Gaara said quickly. "I'm leaving at midday. Make your own decisions. Just don't regret them Naru."

**Ooooh doesn't he caaare a loooot? **

_Apparently so. _

**What? Bad mood? **

She ignored him.

**Bitch.**

"I won't." She told Gaara. "I just…I'm not ready."

"Not ready?" There was a slightly doubtful look on his features.

"Not ready to be …restrained or bound by a village or anyone." She stared very hard out the window. More sand. "Even now, I feel like I'm just doing a mission, and then I'll be off again, finding another job to stay alive."

"I see." He got up. "I'll see you at the gates at midday then."

"Yeah."

* * *

10 am, Konohagakure

Uchiha Sasuke did not like Haku.

For one, that guy didn't have an actual clan-name. He couldn't even remember his own birth-place. Or at least that was what he said.

It irked Sasuke.

The two dark-haired boys really didn't get along that great. And Sakura didn't really help by always appearing to have a problem with deciding which one of them to like.

What also irked Sasuke was that Haku'd turned up at Konoha in the same year that his brother had disappeared and claimed to have fought his brother with some degree of success. It was annoying that his aim was so damn good with those pesky little senbon needles.

And those annoying ice mirrors. Sasuke was going to beat Haku to a pulp one day. He had to beat Haku to beat his brother. He was already working on a new technique named Fire Mirrors. He'd managed to learn how Haku achieved that mind-blurring speed with his sharingan. It wasn't long before-

"Oh Sasuke!" Sakura exclaimed.

It also irked him that he was stuck on the same team as these guys, even though they were already chuunin.

"Hi Sakura." He said blankly.

Haku, who was sitting in a nearby tree in training ground 7 smiled brightly and said, "Good Morning Sakura!"

Sakura blushed. "Hi Haku."

Kakashi sensei had told them 'trust your instincts'. And Sasuke's instincts currently told him to beat the ever loving crap out of the fake-smiling kid sitting up there.

"Haku." He growled, rising to his feet, just as there was a 'poof' and Kakashi appeared in their midst.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura screamed.

Kakashi noted Sasuke's and Haku's fight-ready stances and remarked, "Nope, it would appear I arrived just in time." He winked at the two boys, who glowered back.

"Well well, chuunin exams are coming up so we have no missions today. You are all expected in Sandaime's office at 9 am tomorrow morning for chuunin exam briefing."

"YOU MEAN YOU LET US WAIT ALL THIS TIME JUST TO TELL U-" Sakura began but Kakashi cut her off.

He lowered his voice. "Be very wary guys. Make sure you note every single new ninja entering the village. Don't let a single one go past without your noticing. This could prove vital. And in your free time, scout around Konoha."

Haku leapt down from the tree to join the conspiratorial looking circle. "Why? Is Konoha being surrounded?"

"We suspect there may be attacks in this crucial time. Don't let down your guard." Said Kakashi. "Your job as chuunin is to guard the people of Konoha, never forget that!"

"Yes sir." The team chorused.

"Ok Good!" Kakashi hastily pulled out 'Make-out paradise' as he disappeared.

Sakura stared at the place where he had been. Her eyebrow began twitching. "He didn't even bother leaving before he took out the book!"

* * *

Naruto was at the gates before the leaving party even arrived. If you could really call them gates…

She looked out into the wide expanse of sand. It shone like gold under the afternoon sun, radiating with pure heat.

_Sand everywhere…how do you tell the difference? Sand seems to look the same everywhere. Someone could disguise themselves as sand and hide among those dunes and there might even be a chance I wouldn't spot them. _

Voices were coming near. Naruto spun. Gaara approached, leading a huge cohort of over two hundred nin. There was a crowd of 20 or so genin with their Jounin teachers, looking both awed and terrified of the silent anbu, dressed in the colours of the desert.

_They'd have to change if they want to remain hidden in Konoha. _

Gaara looked up from a conversation with Temari and waved. "Naruto!"

She waved back, smiling as Ginji extended a tendril to wave as well while Mika snapped at the air. "Hi Gaara."

Temari smiled at Naruto. "You're here early."

"Yeah." Naruto rummaged in her pocket. "Huh? Where is it?" Ginji turned her head around to see Mika, who had found the scroll in her pocket and was busily trying to fit it in her fly-trap mouth.

"Mika!" Naruto's voice turned high-pitched as she pulled the scroll out of the plant's grasp. "Behave yourself! What did I say about eating paper?" The fly-trap quailed and ducked into the safety of her sleeves.

She turned to Gaara abruptly and said, "Um…"

The smile on Gaara's face looked like it ate children at night. "Yes, Naruto?"

"I wrote a letter for Sandaime." Naruto mumbled as she proffered the partially digested scroll, while looking vaguely past his shoulder.

"Good girl Naruto." Gaara said with a hint of smugness as he pocketed the scroll.

_He's patronising me, he's really patronising. _Naruto thought as her eyebrow began twitching.

**Not surprising considering how you acted. 'I w-wote a 'wetter' for Sandwaaaimeeee' **Mocked the fox.

_Oh, aren't you so very amusing. _

She looked back up to Gaara, who was still smiling, albeit creepily. "Send Sandaime my regards."

"Sure you don't want to c-"

"No!" She retorted quickly and folded her arms, sticking her nose childishly in the air.

Gaara blinked. "Ok then."

There was a short pause as they looked at each other with some uncertainty. The cohort started moving again, some stragglers had caught up and were comparing the weights of their bags and chatting excitedly about the trip.

"_I heard they live in TREES, there in Konoha!" _

"_Nah nah, mum said the weather's nice there, not as windy and hot."_

"_I bet their genin aren't as good as ours!" _

Naruto gave a nervous little chuckle. "Don't miss me too much?"

"Can't promise that, unfortunately." The last of the students and ninja passed, looking inquisitively back at their leader. Gaara extended his arms and Naruto stepped forward demurely into his embrace. "Be safe, Naruto."

She smiled into his shoulder. "Oh, that's not my lifestyle."

"You know what I mean." He held her tighter.

"Don't die Gaara." She advised in a murmur. "I don't want to stay Kazekage Advisor forever." She added cheekily.

"What? Can't be my Kazekage Advisor when I come back?"

She chuckled and broke away, "We'll see."

He felt the loss of her form against his acutely. His eyes darkened, "I'll miss you. Goodbye then Naru."

She laughed and pushed him forward. "Don't be so down! You're not going to a funeral. Everything's going to be fine. Go go go! They'll leave you behind."

Gaara smiled a little. "Ok…I'm going… I'm going."

Naruto stood back with Temari and Kankuro as they watched the group leave.

Temari spoke first. "I don't want to spoil the warm feeling but…I have a bad feeling…"

Naruto smiled. "Nonsense, they'll be safe in Konoha, very safe! Nothing wrong could go wrong, and besides, Gaara can hold his own against a dozen of Orochimaru's men. He'll be fine."

A crow flew over their heads and screamed. _Baka, baka… _

**Baka you are. You know perfectly well that all hell is about to break loose. **

_Shut up fox._

_

* * *

_

It always amazed Sakura – how no matter how many ninja were assembled, they always seemed to fit in Sandaime's office. He could clap his hands and order a herd of rhinoceros to his office, and as long as they were ninja, they'd probably all fit with space to spare. It was as if the room conformed to fit people. She had this distinct feeling that it was much longer and fit two long tables when she had been a Genin.

It looked the same yet…different. Small yet…big…it was like her eyes could see a small room, yet her brain argued that there was no way the room could possibly contain all the people that were in here now.

Konoha had a giant military force, and somehow, they were all standing in Sandaime's office, along with almost two hundred Suna Ninja.

_Ok. It is a little crowded. _Sakura thought, noting the various ninja who were standing on the walls or sitting outside the window on the balcony. _But there has got to be at least a hundred of us all in this room…_

_I can really swear that I could cross this room in two strides last time I came here for a mission. Yet today…I'd have to plow through yards and yards of Ninjas…_

She looked up and saw Sandaime giving her an enigmatic old-man smile. _Stop smiling at me like that Grandpa Hokage_

"Fellow Ninja!" Sandaime said in a grandiose tone, standing up, flanked by wizened old advisors whose only purpose seemed to be to stand by and look wise. All eyes turned to him, borne from age old obedience to the ancient Hokage. "Today we hold a council not of peace, but of war!"

There was a ripple of quiet talk.

"For the added security of Konoha, we have called on the help of our friends and allies, Sunagakure, and they have not failed us. Here stand our Suna brothers and sisters, ready to help us in our time of great need!"

Sakura located Gaara, silent and proud within the ranks of his ninja. It was hard to miss that head of bright red hair. He looked as impassive as always.

"We have reason to believe that the chuunin exams that will take place in the following week may be the setting of imminent attack. All of us must be vigilant and ready for anything that may happen in the next month!"

Sakura had never seen war before. Her parents were civilians, so they hadn't been involved in the fighting either. It gave her this strange sense of excitement as well as fear. She looked around at all the other ninja in the room. She knew most of them, having grown up watching them, admiring them or learning with them.

Maybe, in just one month, half of these would be gone.

Maybe she would be gone.

Sakura shivered.

* * *

**AAAAAAAAAAAND THAT'S IT~**

**I'm having so much trouble re-writing everything T_T**

**Love you guys**

**;3**

**Charel**


	7. Chapter 3

**Konoha's Saviour**

**Chapter Three**

**By: Foxtriller**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto in any way or form. (Insert clever and witty comment)**

**HEEHEE CHAPTER THREE (I rhyme, I am so cool :D)**

**SUPER SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: So I did say voting was finished…but I went back the other day and read ALL THE COMMENTS. AGAIN. And then took down all the polling results. It was intense. REALLY INTENSE (no seriously, never thought reading comments could be this intense). So yeah. WE HAVE A CLEAR WINNER. It's so clear its not funny…it's also sad because…half of the other comments are screaming 'I DON'T WANT THIS PAIRING!' so please don't desert me for this! :D Anyway~ on with the show**

**Summary of this Story:**

**Naruto leaves the village at a young age. However, destiny draws her back to Konoha…which is in grave danger…can Naruto save the village she hates? What secrets will be revealed about her? ddd's idea.**

* * *

There was an ominous silence in one of the greatest halls in Otogakure. Sometimes it doubled off as a duelling pitch, and at other times was an execution hall, but today it was brimming with Oto ninja, alert and ready to move at their master's command.

Orochimaru surveyed them with satisfied eyes. Five thousand pairs of obedient eyes stared back in anticipation.

A messenger appeared right before him. "Orochimaru sama."

"Yes?" hissed the snake-like man.

"The first three snakes have reached konoha safely. No one suspects a thing."

Orochimaru smiled. He'd termed squadrons of ninja as Snakes. 9 ninja made one snake, and they acted just as a snake would. Sly, treacherous, efficient and above all, quiet and unnoticed until too late.

There was a soft burst of chatter as Oto ninja relayed the information among themselves.

Orochimaru enhanced his voice with a quietly performed jutsu and spoke, immediately silencing the entire crowd. "Tonight. Konoha is ours tonight."

It started as a whisper, then a soft rumble, and soon the entire crowd was roaring so loud dust began shaking from the domed ceiling.

_OTO! OTO! OTO! _

Orochimaru smiled again and turned to Kabuto.

"Isn't it beautiful when one realises their dream is just about to come true?"

* * *

Konohamaru stopped at the gates of the second part of the genin exam and grinned at Moegi and Udon.

"We can do this guys!"

"Hai!" The two yelled back, saluting.

"We're gonna race in, ambush a group, take their scroll and get to the tower in record time!"

"Good plan!" the other two chorused.

The grinned at each other for a few seconds then, then broke into chuckles.

"We've got this!" Moegi grinned. "Especially with Konohamaru, who trained for month with Jiraiya-sama himself!"

Udon sniffed and blew his nose. "I say we go for the Oto team. They've only got two teams and they don't look too hard to take on."

"Nice idea Udon." Konohamaru encouraged. "Moegi you track them for us."

"Yeah!" Moegi replied. "Kay! Lets get ready to rock!"

The whistle blew and the three sped into the forest.

* * *

_'in your free time, scout around Konoha'…_

"WANNA SCOUT WITH ME, SASUKE-KUN?" Sakura grinned and grabbed Sasuke's arm, spinning him around deftly.

So that was another annoying thing about Sakura…how…damn…strong she was. Training with Tsunade had made her this whole new level of dangerous. Dangerously annoying…

Sasuke twisted his hand just enough to writhe out of Sakura's grip. "What do you want, Sakura?"

"Mou…weren't you listening?" Sakura fake-pouted, "Kakashi sensei told us yesterday to _scout around Konoha!_" She lowered her voice considerably at the last three words, before perking straight back up, "Did you forget already?"

Sasuke scratched his head in irritation, "This will not be a date, Sakura."

"Heck yes it will." She turned and smiled blindingly.

_So if she wasn't so loud…she'd be rather pretty…_

"Sigh…Ok lets just g-" Sasuke began, only to have Haku drop down before them from a tree.

_Damn. _"What is it, Haku?" Sasuke growled.

"Now, now, Sasuke-kun. No need to be like that. There's just something I want to show you guys."

"What is this thing?" Sasuke asked suspiciously, looking at Haku's clothes closely, was this guy a fake?

Haku leaned forward and hissed, "Just walk with me."

Sasuke nodded and began to walk, Sakura trotting shortly behind.

"So I was passing your house just then." Haku said quietly as they continued walking, "When I saw something shifting in the shadows. At first I thought it was a squirrel or something, when I realised it was a ninja."

"And…?"

Haku closed his eyes and sighed, "What do you mean 'and'? Someone was doing a really bad job of ambushing you."

"Well I'm alive s-"

Haku put his hand in his pocket and quietly pulled out a headband. "My policy is kill first, ask questions later. I put two needles through his neck – that rendered him in near death state, then I took his headband. And then Sasuke, here's the interesting bit…"

"What..?"

Haku turned the headband to show him the symbol on the other side.

"He turned into a snake."

The Oto symbol was on the headband.

Sakura blanched. "We're under atta-"

Sasuke and Haku clapped their hands over her mouth simultaneously.

"Not so loud." Haku whispered urgently.

"Because right now…" Sasuke hissed, glancing slightly behind him

"…We're being followed."

* * *

Neji sat boredly with Kiba inside the uncomfortable little box that served as the checkpoint at the gates of Konoha.

In the event of the chuunin exam, a huge banner had been erected across the gates, which spelled in huge characters, 'WELCOME TO KONOHA'.

The wind shifted the banner lightly, and Neji glanced at it.

Kiba sat in wolfish silence.

Neji turned his pale eyes on the boy beside him. Come to think of it, he'd never really gotten to know the guy. As a comrade, yes, but not as a friend.

He noticed the absence of Kiba's usual companion, a certain wolf-like dog.

"Where's Akamaru?" Neji questioned.

Kiba turned and grinned, showing fangs. "Gone to take a piss."

"I see." Said Neji, ever the diplomat.

Kiba slumped back in his chair. "Konoha Summers are so damn hot."

Neji nodded, silently, and contemplated the stone paving that made up the base of the entrance.

"All the genins have come and all." Kiba groaned. "In fact, they're already getting through their second examination. All their parents, their teachers and their guards are here. No one's coming. I don't see _why_ we have to be here."

Neji said nothing, then picked up a pencil.

There were a few seconds of taut silence before he passed Kiba a scrawled note.

_Either you're really that stupid or your playacting is excellent. There's a man peering at us from a bush, 20 m away, 50 deg NW. Now carry on. _

"What's this? Noughts and Crosses? You must be really bored, Neji." Kiba remarked as Akamaru trotted back to him.

Neji resisted the urge to slap his forehead. "First move is yours."

Kiba picked up the pencil.

_He smells like snake. _

Neji lifted an eyebrow. "Really."

_He's a little too obvious. I'm confident that he's just a distraction. _

"That's not good enough then." Kiba said with a smirk.

_I'll intercept him and get reinforcements. You find the original party. _

Kiba stretched and made discreet hand-signs. Another two Kibas appeared quietly, one began moving quietly towards the gate and the other sprinted towards the Kage office.

Kiba whistled to Akamaru. "C'mon boy, lets kick ass."

Neji nodded to the real Kiba. There was no time to be making friends, of course. Knowing a man as a comrade was enough.

_Byakugan! _

Neji scanned the area around Konoha. His eyes widened.

* * *

Sasuke wiped his hands on his shirt. "Good riddance."

A pile of four unconscious Oto ninja lay on the ground before him, thoroughly beaten up.

Haku grinned. "Serves them right for sneaking up on us and all."

"Don't underestimate Konoha ninja!" Sakura said contemptuously. She was quiet for a second. "Isn't it a little strange? First Oto-nin poking around Sasuke's house, then Oto nin creeping up on us."

Haku smiled cheerily, "Well…I didn't tell you guys something." He pulled another headband out of his pocket.

"Another one? Where did you get it from?" Sakura demanded.

"I passed your clinic too." Haku said. "Sent a few needles through that one as well. He was a bit of a bother…stood up and came after me…had to use Ice mirrors."

Sakura's forehead creased, "I do make morning visits every week…but today I stopped by Ino's for a bit…What does this mean?"

"Someone's trying to take you guys out." Haku said quietly. "And since they're all Oto Nin, it means Oto is behind this, or someone's framing them, which is unlikely. Looks like Sandaime was right."

"But why us?" Sakura asked, confused.

"Because we're famous and we're strong. You trained with Tsunade-sama, Sakura, and I was trained by Kakashi-sensei as well as the 12 Fire guardians." Sasuke answered. "Problem is what do we do now?"

"We've got war on our hands, guys."

"We have to warn Hokage!" Sakura cried immediately.

"Not we." Sasuke replied calmly, "You. Haku and I are going straight to the gate. Others would have realised by now. We're gonna throw that Snake out of the village before he even gets a bite in."

Haku gave another cheery grin. "Sorry, not Haku and I, just you Sasuke. Fighting your intruders as well as our ambushers just then has been my limit."

He sat down heavily on the ground. "I'll catch up later, Sasuke."

"Okay then." Sasuke turned to go.

"Wait!" Sakura shouted after him, "We can't just leave Haku here!"

"Don't worry Sakura." Haku gave a sleepy smile, "Roll me behind some bushes. I'll be fine in a few hours. The village is more important. Go!"

She turned, biting back tears, "I can try my energy-refilling jutsu or something, are you su-"

"Kami's sake, woman!" Haku rasped, "You're acting like I'm on my deathbed! This is war, Sakura! Face it already!"

"Sakura." Sasuke said quietly. The girl turned resignedly, and the two carried Haku behind some bushes as he requested.

"Lets go."

The two sped away like arrows.

* * *

"Do you know one interesting thing about Konoha Ninja, Kabuto?" Orochimaru asked as he sipped on a cup of bitter medicine.

Kabuto looked about the glum room. He knew several interesting things about Konoha ninja, "What might that be?" He asked.

"The fact that they're all _friends." _Orochimaru replied. "Their alliances aren't built on fear or blind obedience. No…the Hokage's have cultivated this strange but effective strategy of bonding Konoha nin together."

"I see." Said Kabuto.

Orochimaru wasn't done yet, "Konoha nin are raised together, they learn together, fight together…This togetherness they call friendship. And that raw feeling of intense friendship, they call the Will of fire."

"That's interesting." Said Kabuto.

"Can you see what I'm getting at, Kabuto?"

"A way to defeat them, Lord Orochimaru?" Kabuto feigned the appropriate level of curiosity.

"Yessss…" Orochimaru whispered. "This _will of fire _can be exploited. You see…Kabuto…friendships aren't fair, unlike what Konoha would like its people to think.."

"They certainly aren't."

"Most friendship 'groups' as they are called…are named 'groups' for a reason. Because friends tend to _clump. _Imagine Konoha's ninja clumping into protective little groups. What happens to the defense of the village?"

"They're well trained…The safety of the village is their priority, with all due respect Lord Orochimaru."

"I know that." Orochimaru said impatiently, "Can you not see my point yet?"

* * *

Naruto stared impassively out of the window of the Kazekage office. She hadn't done much today. She'd signed some request for a Konoha merchant to set up shop in Suna, had a brief clash with Gaara's father and was preparing to start reviewing Suna's remaining forces after she'd met with Temari and Kankuro.

**You're bored aren't you. **

_Not bored enough to talk to you _

Ginji and Mika writhed as if they sensed the fox talking.

**I'll talk regardless. **

_I don't care. _

**There's something I really hate about you Konoha nin. **

She didn't rise to the fox's taunt. Telling him that she wasn't a Konoha nin would result in him gloating that she'd talked to him.

**That dogged determination you insects fight with. They knew I'd crush them, but they kept coming. **

Naruto wondered briefly about what the fox was trying to get to and decided to stay silent and pretend not to be listening.

**You know what they'd yell at me when they launched themselves at me? 'You killed my friends!' **The fox began laughing darkly. **They were pathetic midgets. But those eyes they had on them…Pretty fierce for tiny bugs. **

Naruto threw a pen and pinned a fly to the wall. Mika shot forward and abruptly ate it.

**After rotting in here for a good 16 years, a smidgen of my life, I've come to an understanding about your pathetic Konoha people. I've analysed the movement of every single one of you bugs and that pathetic killing intent. **

She stared out at the sand. It was certainly less entertaining than whatever the fox was talking about. What was he planning anyway?

**Your Hokage's were smart, enforcing that loyalty Konoha nin hold to their fellow nin. But it's also their greatest mistake. This is why those Oto nin going towards Konoha are going to crush them like ants under the feet of giants. **

Naruto stiffened.

Kyuubi laughed again. **You're pathetic, human. You're fighting those emotions you hold to that crappy, dead village of yours, but you know they're winning. You also know that you are too pathetic to help them even if you care. **

So he was openly taunting her now.

_What do you want? _

**I can tell you all about the weaknesses of Konoha. About how to make Konoha indestructible, how to keep that little Kazekage of yours safe…My power can control this entire world, and you can use it as you wish. **

_I'm not tearing off that seal. _

**All I want is to see things. Rotting in this cell is driving me mad. Share with me one of your eyes. **

The fox could take over with as much as a fingernail. _Do you think I'm a braindead fool? _

**Yes. **

_Forget it. You can rot. I don't care. _

**When your friends die, when your village rots like I am, you will remember that it's all your fault. All your fault that you couldn't save them because _you are so pathetic without me. _**

* * *

Sakura was a strong runner, not a fast runner, but strong. She could go on for days; having perfect chakra control and medical skills had its perks.

She sped through the streets steadily. The rooves were too visible. If war was really descending on them, Sakura wanted to remain inconspicuous.

She darted, alleyway to alleyway, barely looking around her.

Sakura skidded to a stop. She had caught a flash of gold. Ino.

She spun on her heel and ran back, she caught the blonde girl as she headed casually down the street.

"Ino!" Sakura hissed.

"Yo, Sakura. Done any scouting?" Ino asked casually.

"I've done enough." Sakura replied tersely. "War's on us already. Oto ninja were waiting outside me and Sasuke's doorsteps, no more scouting, time to fight."

Ino blanched. "They're here already? Oh god, I have to go shut down the shop."

"No time. It's on the other side of town, Ino." Sakura said quietly, "People come first. I'm going to warn the Hokage. You need to protect our village. The gate's only half a kilometre away, that's probably where the first ambush is gonna be."

She stood up, "I need to go now."

Ino grabbed her arm. "Don't go Sakura…"

"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked, surprised.

"Stay with me…" Ino's eyes began watering, "Oh God, I am so scared."

"I can't…" Sakura scanned the street for anyone who might help Ino. "We don't have time for this…"

Ino began crying quietly. "I'm not the greatest ninja Sakura…I only work in my Ino-shika-cho trio…What am I going to do by myself?"

Sakura frowned. "How about this.." she scratched her head absentmindedly, "You come with me and warn the Hokage. We'd work ok together."

The blonde brightened up almost immediately.

Sakura sighed, "Ok let's go then."

* * *

"You see, Kabuto. Most villages fear and revere Konoha for one interesting trait. Most teams go into disarray when their leaders are killed. Cut of a snake's head and it dies." Orochimaru began.

Kabuto gave an intent 'I'm listening' look.

"Other villages are astounded when Konoha nin continue fighting despite the death of their leaders. They don't desert each other." Orochimaru continued, "The villages think, Konoha's friendships are extremely strong, they run thicker than blood, friendship is stronger than leadership."

Kabuto nodded. That was true, he'd heard that before.

"Konoha's secret is that they hide their leaders well. _Very well._ When disaster like the havoc the Snakes are wreaking strikes..it'll be easy to see who these are…"

"Indeed."

"It'll be the ones all the weaker in mind gather around. If I'm not mistaken, that's happening right now."

* * *

Sakura smiled mirthlessly, mind going overdrive thinking about strategies. _Looks like I've got my own little army. _

They'd bumped into Chouji shortly after, and then a few confused Suna nin, who insisted on joining them. Why were they treating her like some sort of leader? Did she look like a leader?

Sakura turned to face them, "We can't all be messengers, some of us need to go and fight."

"But what do we do?" complained one of the Suna nin.

She scratched her head and tried to think of something safe for them to do. "How about this, you three Suna guys, go warn the Kazekage and ask for his orders."

They nodded reluctantly.

_What are they waiting for? Do they think I can protect all of them? _

"Go!" Sakura said shrilly. "They need you."

They turned hesitantly, than began leaping off sluggishly. Sakura shook her head and sighed.

"You're a real leader, Sakura." Ino said.

"Cmon, let's go find Hokage." Sakura ordered.

Chouji grunted and the three moved on.

* * *

Kiba's clone launched a Gatsuuga at the peeper in the bushes before he even had a chance to react, the clone popped out of existence upon throwing the assailant backwards and was followed by Kiba, who dropped onto the man with a 'Ha!'.

The man grinned up at Kiba, then pulled his vest open. "Surprise."

Kiba's yell turned into a yelp as he rapidly turned back to Akamaru and leapt backwards as the man exploded.

"Akamaru!" Kiba yelled, rushing towards the clearing, just as he was surrounded another five Oto nin.

"Shit." He looked at the three. "No matter. Akamaru and I can take care of 10 of ya." Akamaru growled.

Kiba gauged that they were chuunin level. _I can take at least two of them…My clone had better get to Hokage soon…_

"Ok Akamaru, lets do this!"

With a growl, the two turned into massive, howling wolf-hounds and began attacking the shocked Oto nin.

* * *

Neji stood about 200 paces from the attacking force that surrounded Konoha.

_Impossible. _With his 360 (actually, 359) degree vision, he could see that Konoha had been completely surrounded. Neji made some mental calculations. _They outnumber us three to one. _But that wasn't too big of a problem, he knew Konoha nin who could wipe out dozens. _Jiraiya-sama's not far off…He's at Waterfall village, should be back soon. Tsunade-sama is in our clinics, if she's alerted, she could take out huge chunks of nin…_

_Focus Neji…Focus…don't let them know of your presence. _Neji realised what a precarious position he was in. _Why would they send out one man, or a single squad as a decoy if they already have us surrounded? _

_If they know I'm here, I won't stand a chance, and Konoha will be one step behind. We have an advantage, we know they're there…_

_This is one of the times when I wish I had a summon. Why does the Hyuuga clan not have a Summon creature? _He performed a Kage bunshin quietly.

_So this is why this is a forbidden technique. _Jiraiya had revealed the scroll of forbidden techniques to the Jounin of Konoha and advised them to use these in times of need.

_It uses up a half of my chakra. _Neji took out a scroll quietly and began writing into it quickly. He rolled up the scroll deftly and handed it to the other Neji, who took off on a run.

_They want me to gather up a group of nin whom I deem best, and attack them, that way they'll pick off good nin before they even enter Konoha. Doubtless, they've already infiltrated Konoha in an attempt to quietly eliminate the best…_

Neji let a cocky half-smile slide onto his face. _I won't give you the satisfaction of taking out a squad. _

* * *

Sakura thought as she ran. _This isn't right, if Oto wanted to eliminate strong nin, they'd go after Tsunade-sama, or even just some of the clan heads. _

_…and that would be an extremely bad tactic. Tsunade would definitely emerge victorious and warning bells would be ringing all over Konoha…we'd group up, strategise and destroy our attackers easily._

_They must have balls…sending anyone in here. Is the main force here already? Or do they have thousands of reinforcements so that whoever's out there doesn't matter? _

* * *

Neji smiled at the traps he'd picked up around the enemy. _You can't fool my Hyuuga eyes so easily. _He found dozens of traps, some almost invisible, even to his Byakugan, but he wasn't fooled.

Alighting briefly on a far off tree-branch he surveyed the group he was about to attack. _They're completely unawares. _

Dodging tree-trunks he sped forwards and lobbed a smoke bomb directly at the people as he dropped down on them. Byakugan activated, he could see through the smoke easily.

He took down his first ninja easily, a palm to the neck, closing their tenketsu as well as blood supply. _Dead._

The others reacted with surprising speed. Neji felt the air swoosh as a kunai whipped out behind him and slashed at his approximate position. He disabled that arm with a few strikes and spun to hit a third.

_Take down as many as I can. _

The smoke began clearing. Neji cursed, his advantage was fading. He heard whispered exclamations of 'Hyuuga!' and 'Suicidal'.

In the initial moments of his attack, the rest of the enemy had taken that chance to surround him.

_I don't stand a chance of escape. _

He whipped out two kunai and channelled his chakra through them. _Bet you never heard this about the Hyuuga. _

He jabbed at another nin's stomach tenketsu, twisting the kunai in the wound, cutting both the outer and inner organs. _That's because, this technique is invented by me. _

There were a few gasps of recognition.'Neji' and 'Genius'.

Neji grinned darkly and spun, releasing a massive Kaiten that blew a dozen nin off their feet. He leapt up in the midst of the new round of confusion he'd created and slashed two nin in mid-air, and began descending confidently towards the ground…

…only to be impaled upon a venomous sword…

The Oto nin holding it grinned, "What an honour, to kill the genius of the Hyuuga clan upon my first visit to Konoha."

Neji writhed on the sword and choked up some blood. His stomach was on fire. He wouldn't last long.

The nin twisted his sword, "Looks like Konoha isn't so fearsome at all."

All of a sudden, Neji disappeared in a poof of smoke.

The ninja stood, mouths gaping for a few seconds.

"A bunshin?" said the sword-wielder incredulously, "Do you mean that five of us just got taken out…by a clone?"

* * *

Sandaime had paced around his room exactly twenty three times that morning. And he had read Naruto's letter about five times.

He pulled the scroll out of his pocket and opened it for the sixth.

_Grandpa Hokage,_

_Gaara told me to write a letter to you. _

_I haven't seen you for 8 years. How are you? Konohamaru's definitely no runt anymore. He must be a great ninja by now. _

_You probably guessed by now that I'm in Suna. I've gotta say, your tracking systems must be top-rate. How did that bird still remember my chakra signature after so many years?_

Sandaime sneaked a guilty look at one of the chakra-infused plants he'd rescued from Naruto's abandoned house after she left. The plant acted like any other plant. It sat stiffly in its pot and grew slowly and needed normal nutrients and water. It was pretty normal.

Except when it waved…at every single ninja above C-class level…the plant seemed to detect chakra concentration.

The plant was currently waving frantically. Sandaime put his scroll back in his pocket just as Sakura charged through the door, Ino and Chouji in tow.

"Sandaime! Konoha's being att-" Sakura began just as a clone of Kiba crashed through the window, followed by Neji, who was bearing a scroll.

They stared at each other for a few seconds, then Sakura acknowledged Neji. He had a scroll, so he probably had more information.

"Neji, make your report." Sandaime ordered.

Neji nodded then jolted slightly and muttered something about his clone taking out five. He opened the scroll and gave it to Hokage who read it quickly and frowned, he waved Sakura and the clone Kiba closer.

The two read it and noted what Neji had seen outside of Konoha.

"Currently the real me is fighting Oto nin." Kiba said.

"May I go and assist him?" Neji asked.

Sakura butted in, "Sasuke was going that way too, most likely he will be able to help Kiba."

Sandaime rubbed his temples and closed his eyes. "Neji, go and help mobilise forces to defend the walls."

"Hai!" Neji leapt out the window promptly.

"Sakura!" Sandaime said in an ordering tone. Sakura perked up, as did Ino and Chouji who were standing behind her.

"I would like you t-"

He was interrupted as Ebisu appeared all of a sudden in the room.

"Hokage!" Ebisu yelled, launching himself at the table.

"Ebisu. Wait. We are in an emergency, we must act calmly. I am giving Sakura an order." Hokage raised his hand and waved Ebisu aside. "Now Sakura, I want you t-"

"Hokage-sama!" Ebisu said again in a more desperate tone, "You must listen to me! The Chuunin exam is in a disarray, it's chaos down there!"

"Have ninja's been dispatched to deal w-" Sandaime began, only to be interrupted.

"Yes hokage! But more importantly, Konohamaru…"

* * *

If anything, Moegi had learnt a fair amount of medical jutsu in her pre-chuunin exam training.

But nothing she had learnt was going to help her now.

"Konohamaru…" Udon said softly, pushing the hair away from Konohamaru's blankly open eyes.

Moegi closed her eyes and let tears fall slowly, splattering against the ground like Konohamaru's blood.

"Moegi." Udon said in his quiet voice, while wiping his bloody sleeve on his nose. "What are we going to do Moegi? What are we going to do? Konohamaru's injured!"

The boy lay over Udon's lap, the latter dripping tears all over his team-mate. His face was intact, aside from a few bruises…but neck down…

Moegi averted her eyes. He hadn't stood a chance. He'd destroyed his own chakra pathways using Rasengan three times that day. Konohamaru had been shredded like straw against that strange snake-like nin's attacks.

"Konohamaru…" Udon whimpered again, "We…we have to take him to hospital…Moegi-chan."

Moegi put her hand on Udon's arm. "Don't overstress yourself Udon. Your leg is bleeding, you should lie down."

"But Konohamaru's worse! We have to find adults! Why are we alone here? Why did this happen to us? We must get Konohamar-"

"Konohamaru.." Moegi said sorrowfully, her voice changing from to a choking sob. "Konohamaru's dead, Udon."

Moegi tensed as she heard the sound of footsteps coming in their direction.

_I'm the only one left who can stand in the team. I've got to protect Udon. _

A chuunin with the Konoha headband stepped into the clearing, only to be confronted by a stern-looking, kunai-wielding Moegi.

She dropped it when she saw him. "Oh sorry sir. I thought you might have b-"

"It's ok…little girl." Said the chuunin, licking his lips.

"Who are you sir? I've never seen you before." Moegi asked, relaxing her defences.

"My name?" The chuunin chuckled. "My name is _death, kiddy." _

Moegi shrieked as the chuunin ripped off his face to reveal one with a sound headband.

Udon scrambled back as best as he could, dragging Konohamaru's torn up body with him.

_No one…no one's coming to help us. _

* * *

**I felt bad killing Konohamaru..he's just an innocent little boy ):**

**BUT THIS IS TO SHOW HOW EVIL SOUND REALLY IS. EEEEVIL! No excuses for liking Orochimaru guys. He's EVIL. EEEVIL…super evil. Even tho he's also super dead…but yeah :D**

**Don't worry~ Akatsuki + Sasori (hinthint) will show up soon…maybe…in 2 chapters ;P **

**Seeya later dudes**

**~Foxtriller**


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